Harry Potter and the Green Flame Torch
by Author Name Changed
Summary: -completed- Harry's crazy sixth year: one hyper student, a mysterious character that keeps popping up , dreams, secrets and, oh!, my, do those Defence teachers never stop changing? R&R. Pairings: RH, Snape?, Sirius? Post Ootp
1. Many Letters

Dedication: For the Red Dragons Order, fellow fanfic writer, because of whom I started writing my own fan fictions.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own anything that appears in the Harry Potter books, J. K. Rowling does. The rest belongs to me. This is NOT the real Harry Potter and the Green Flame Torch -duh!- That said, let's move on!  
  
Harry Potter and the Green Flame Torch  
  
Chapter One: Many letters  
  
Every kid in Little Whinging was celebrating the beginning of summer and, especially, the beginning of the summer vacation. Every kid was happy to be away from school and was enjoying the summer. That is, with one exception: a 15 year-old boy who lived at number 4, Privet Drive.  
  
The reason why the boy, called Harry Potter, was quite unhappy with everything and mad with the world was actually divided in many parts. For once, he always hated summer vacations, because he had to live his aunt and uncle who really didn't like him since he was a wizard and totally different from them. He had to live with them because the most evil wizard in the world, Voldemort, killed his parents when he was only one year old.  
  
And that brought him to his second reason why he hated that summer: there was a prophecy that only he, Harry Potter, could kill Voldemort, and that wasn't quite simple since that evil wizard happened to be the most powerful evil wizard alive.  
  
The third reason was that the adult person who he got along best, his godfather, died at the end of his school year, killed by one of Voldemort's followers, who were called Death Eaters.  
  
But luckily he still had a few great friends who would always help him when he was in need: his best friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, Ron's twin brothers, Fred and George Weasley, their sister, Ginny Weasley, a boy called Neville Longbottom and a few grownups that liked him. Yeah, life could be worse, but not much worse than it already was. Spending his vacation with the Dursley's was definitely not fun.  
  
As he stood in the park, looking around, millions of questions popped into his mind: was anybody going to save him this year from the Dursley's? Last year he was saved by the Order of the Phoenix, but he thought that nobody would save him now. They were all too busy. And besides, where could they send him?  
  
But this year was better than last year with one difference: he now knew what was going on in the magical world. Ron and Hermione were sending him letters telling him that everything was o.k. and not to worry and were telling him what was going on in the Order. Not too detailed, of course, but enough to make him feel better. But was it actually true? The Dursley's let him watch the news now and nothing fishy was going on.  
  
As he stood there, an small owl came from the sky, hooting happily.  
  
"Hello, Pig", Harry said quietly and caught the small owl in his hand. He took her letter and started reading it.  
  
Dear Harry,  
  
How are you? We're home right now and Tonks says "Hi!".  
  
Did you get the Daily Prophet this morning? They wrote a whole article about the Order. And it was quite interesting, too. But Dumbledore didn't give them too many details, said he doesn't want You-Know-Who to know anything about his plans.  
  
Fred and George are doing o.k. with Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Here everything is o.k. Except for the Percy part. He hasn't apologized yet, and mum and dad are still waiting for him to.  
  
Something weird is happening, though. Can't say what, in case the letter is getting intercepted.  
  
Miss you,  
  
Ron  
  
But now Harry knew better than last year what was happening. He caught the part about 'can't say what' and started thinking. Well, it had to be about the Order, but it wasn't of maximal importance, because he said 'everything is o.k.'  
  
He got up and went towards Mrs. Figg's house. Since he knew she was a Squib, he went at her place more often. Well, as often you could go in two weeks of vacation, anyway!  
  
He got to the house and knocked at the door. Footsteps could be heard from behind the door and a woman's voice said:  
  
"Coming, Coming"  
  
The door opened and Harry came face to face with an old, batty lady.  
  
"Hello, Harry, come on in!"  
  
"Hello, Mrs. Figg!"  
  
She took him to an old dining room and made him sit down on a chair.  
  
"Well, Harry, it's nice of you to visit!"  
  
"Nice to see you again, Mrs. Figg"  
  
"How have you been?"  
  
"Fine, thank you. And you?"  
  
"Oh, great, I've just fed my dearest cats."  
  
Harry smiled. The old lady had a passion for cats.  
  
"So, do you know what's going on in the Order?" Harry asked politely.  
  
"Of course I do, dear" she answered smiling. "Everything is going well, You- Know-Who had a few plans destroyed before he could even try to use them, otherwise nothing important."  
  
"That's great!" Harry said. Oh, they were hiding something from him again. "Has there been anything weird going on lately?"  
  
"No, not really", she answered, looking curiously at him. "Why, has anyone told you anything?"  
  
"No", he lied. Whatever it was, it must have been important, or Mrs. Figg would have told him about it.  
  
"Would you like something to drink?"  
  
"Yes, please", he answered  
  
They talked about little things for some while and then Harry went home. Sirius would have told him what everything was about. Why, why did he have to die? He missed him now more than ever. Maybe it was his fault Sirius died. If he hadn't went to the Department of Mysteries, maybe Sirius would have still been alive.  
  
He slowly walked home and went to his room. He closed the door and let himself fall on the bed. Sirius had been for him something like an older brother. and now he was dead.  
  
There was a knock at the door and Harry stood up and opened the door. There, for his surprise was his cousin, Dudley. Harry's jaw dropped. Dudley had been avoiding him since last year, why was he at the door.  
  
"Hello, Dudley, come in." he said and his massive cousin entered.  
  
"Dad said go down-now." He said shivering.  
  
Harry went out through the door and Dudley followed. They went down the stairs to the living room. There sat his aunt and uncle.  
  
"Sit down, boy", uncle Vernon said.  
  
Harry sat down and looked curiously at his uncle.  
  
"What have you been up to?"  
  
"Nothing", said Harry, more and more amazed. "Why?"  
  
"There were some people today at my company. I had to leave for a few minutes and when I came back I definitely heard them say your name. Here do they know it from?"  
  
"How should I know?"  
  
"They also said something about an Order. What were they talking about, boy?"  
  
Harry looked at him. Well, he might just say it.  
  
"They probably were wiz. of my kind. And they were talking about the Order of the Phoenix, I think."  
  
"And what was your lot doing at my company?"  
  
"Beats me!" said Harry truthfully.  
  
"You mean you don't know what your own are doing?" said uncle Vernon. "I don't buy it, you know"  
  
"There must be millions of wiz. of my kind in the world. How could I know them all?" said Harry getting less and less patient.  
  
"But how many of them know you?" asked uncle Vernon, also loosing his patience.  
  
"More than you think" mumbled Harry. "Now, if you don't mind, I'm going back up to send a letter to those people who you saw at the end of my school-year."  
  
That did the trick: uncle Vernon let him go and Harry went upstairs. Thank God a few members from the Order decided to scare uncle Vernon at the end of his school-year!  
  
He sat down and started writing. He thought of what he would write and his heart gave a painful beat. This letter could have been for Sirius. He tried to get his godfather out of his mind and started writing. After about half an hour, he came up with a good solution.  
  
Dear guys,  
  
How are you all? Is everything all right?  
  
I'm getting bored here. Do you think I could leave this place now?  
  
Uncle Vernon says that a couple of people came to his company today and said something about me and the Order when they thought he was gone. Would you happen to know what's going on?  
  
Yours,  
  
Harry  
  
He went towards his owl, Hedwig, who was sleeping in her cage.  
  
"Hey, Hedwig! Think you could deliver this to Tonks?"  
  
The owl hooted happily, took the letter and flew with it. Harry watched it get smaller and smaller on the sky and took back Ron's letter. He re-read it and noticed the part about the article about the Order. He took his copy of the Daily Prophet and started reading the article.  
  
The Order of the Phoenix  
  
Albus Dumbledore has admitted that when he heard the story of You Know Who's come back to life, he called for a few trustworthy people to help him fight the forces of evil. Although the Ministry of Magic might not have approved that at the certain time, it now approves it totally.  
  
The Headmaster of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry has refused to tell us any names from within the Order or where the Headquarters are.  
  
"I am deeply sorry", he said, "but we need to keep this a secret. But we are now in cooperation with the Ministry and we will try to make this the best for the wizard community. Meanwhile, we advice the magical world to be on total alert."  
  
Dumbledore has been put back into his old positions and rejoined the Chairmanship of the International Confederation of Wizards and is Chief Warlock on the Wizengamot again.  
  
Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic admits that all these titles have been taken away from him because of the statements of the You Know Who's return. He said that he was afraid that Albus Dumbledore was getting of track and tried to keep him from harming the community of wizards.  
  
"I admit that I was extremely skeptical about the return of He-Who-Must-Not- Be-Named and now I am very sorry for that. I wish the community of wizards will accept my apologies."  
  
The Order of the Phoenix had existed during the last rise of He-Who-Must- Not-Be-Named and now, as Dumbledore says, it is better organized.  
  
We can only hope for the best.  
  
Miranda Hovel  
  
Harry smiled. Well, at least Fudge apologized!  
  
The next day, in the morning, Harry was woken up, as usual, by the owl who delivered the Daily Prophet. He remembered that he had a nightmare again, about Sirius's death and what happened later and, to tell the truth, he was quite shaken. He paid the owl and took the paper, going quickly through it. There was nothing interesting, though. A few minutes later, another owl came through the window, a snow white owl. Hedwig.  
  
"'lo Hedwig" Harry said taking the letter.  
  
Dear Harry,  
  
I think you could leave that place now. Is it still unnaturally clean?  
  
So, you say your uncle heard two wizards? Well, there's nothing to worry about, they were Remus and Arthur! They wanted to check on your dearest uncle. So, he didn't recognize them? Remind me to congratulate them!!! ;-)  
  
The others say "hi!"  
  
Write back soon,  
  
Tonks  
  
Harry grinned and went down for breakfast, temporarily forgetting about his nightmare.  
  
"What on Earth were you doing last night, boy?" uncle Vernon asked letting his paper down.  
  
"What do you mean?" asked Harry.  
  
"You screamed in your sleep, woke up the whole house."  
  
"I had a nightmare." Harry said his heart aching badly.  
  
"You yelled 'Sirius! Let go! Let go! no!'" said aunt Petunia. "I thought somebody was attacking you! But then you didn't say any more."  
  
"If you yell like that ever again", said Vernon menacingly, "I'll lock you up in your room!"  
  
"Fine!" said Harry quite angry. "See if I care!"  
  
He didn't feel to well. He started screaming in his sleep.  
  
After breakfast, he sent a letter to Ron telling him about Remus's and Arthur's visit and about the fact that he got really bored of staying with the Dursley's -duh!- and wanted to know more things about the Order.  
  
The next day, the owl from Ron was quite short, but Harry jumped high to the ceiling reading it.  
  
Why don't you stay with us for the rest of the holiday, Harry?  
  
Ron  
  
He quickly wrote a 'yes!!!' on a piece of parchment and gave it to Pig who was flying like mad through his room, under Hedwig's disapproving eyes.  
  
Harry took out another piece of parchment and wrote a letter to the Order.  
  
Dear guys,  
  
Ron asked me if I'd like to stay at his place and I accepted. I hope I'll be out of here soon!  
  
I miss you all, of course! The Dursley's are o.k. Well. As o.k. as they can be. But they're not as bad as they used to be. Oh, I hope you don't mind, but I threatened them with you a couple of times. They were quite scared!!!  
  
Write back soon!  
  
Harry  
  
"Hedwig!" he called his owl, making her jump up in the air a little, hooting. "Could you send this to anybody in the Order? Except for Snape, of course!" he added thinking of Snape's reaction when he got a letter with "I miss you. Harry" and especially about the "I threatened them with you".  
  
Harry laughed imagining an outraged Potion Master getting that letter.  
  
The next morning, he got two letters: one from Ron saying that they'd pick him up in two days and one from Remus, saying that they were glad he was well and happy they could help with the Dursley's. Life was good! Or, it would have been so if Sirius was still alive and Voldemort hadn't risen again.  
  
When he told the news to the Dursley's -Ron's, of course-, they almost went mad and calmed down only much later, when Harry assured them that this time Dudley won't get no pig's tail or huge tongue and that the house will be intact. Or, at least, that was his hope.  
  
Finally, the big day had come!!! The Weasley's were picking him up today. Hopefully through Muggle ways, or the Dursley's would have gone ballistic.  
  
O.K., guys, thanks for reading, I'll be updating soon, I hope. Amala will also be in the book and you'll get to know how she finds out about Sirius and many things about the order.  
  
I'd like to thank everybody who read and reviewed 'Behind the Veil'. Yes, that story will be mentioned in the book, but not everything will be said.  
  
Some of the reviewers said that Amala is a bit Mary-Sueish. Problem is, I've got no clue who Mary-Sue is. Out of what I got, she's a new helpless girl at school who everybody likes and gets to be the star of the whole thing. Am I right? Oh, well, Amala is not like that. Yes, she's a new girl and yes, she's nice, but not everybody likes her. I know I said everybody does like her, but I meant Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, these guys. Not the whole school!!!  
  
Please review!!!  
  
P.S. Did Mary-Sue have a crush on Snape, who is a huge jerk, as usual? ;-) 


	2. Goodbye, Dursleys!

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling does. Don't sue! O.K., people, I'm not that pleased with this chapter, but it is important, so hey! It's here!  
  
Chapter 2: Good bye, Dursleys!  
  
The Weasley's were coming at 7 and Harry couldn't have been more enthusiastic. Yes, there were only three weeks since he hadn't seen them, but with the Dursley's, and the stress, it seemed like months.  
  
At quarter to 7, Vernon made his way to Harry and whispered:  
  
"If they do anything to our house, I'll hold you responsible!"  
  
"O.k.", Harry answered. If they did anything to the house, he'd run away. fast!!!  
  
Dudley was looking very uncomfortable. The last times he had seen wizards he got a pig's tail and a huge tongue.  
  
At 7 o' clock precisely, the door bell rang and aunt Petunia went and opened it. 4 redheaded people and a brown-haired girl came in.  
  
"Hello!" said Harry happily. "Hermione, I didn't know you were coming too!"  
  
"Well, they picked me up too!" she said hugging Harry. "I missed you!"  
  
"I missed you too!" he said. "But, air, Hermione!"  
  
The girl was squeezing worse and worse.  
  
"'lo, Harry!" Ron and Ginny said together.  
  
"Harry, dear", said Mrs. Weasley, "nice to see you again".  
  
"Yes, indeed", added Mr. Weasley. "Where are your school stuff?" he asked.  
  
"In the living room!" answered Harry.  
  
"I'll get it!" he answered back and went for the trunk.  
  
The Dursleys were definitely not enjoying any of this. Dudley was sticking to the wall, uncle Vernon was looking in a bad way at everybody and aunt Petunia had an ugly look on her face, as if she had to stand a hoard of baboons in her house. Harry couldn't help but smile.  
  
"Got it!' came the voice of Mr. Weasley. "Good bye!" he added towards the Dursleys while getting out with Harry's huge school trunk.  
  
The others waved good bye too and left. The Dursleys mumbled something and closed the door behind.  
  
Mr. Weasley was just putting the trunk in the boot and said enthusiastically towards Harry:  
  
"I got a new car!"  
  
"And this one isn't flying!" whispered Ron in his year.  
  
"Another Ford Anglia?" Harry asked.  
  
"Yes, I used to like the old one." Came the answer from the very enthusiastic Mr. Weasley.  
  
Harry felt a wave of guilt going through his body. It was his fault he didn't have his old car. But Mr. Weasley didn't notice anything and told them to get in the car. The inside of the car was magically enlarged, so the 4 kids could easily stay on the back seat.  
  
"So, what's been happening?" Harry asked.  
  
"Oh, many things", Ron answered. "The 'Weasley Wizard Wheezes' are going great and mum got used to the idea."  
  
"I had to" she said from her front seat, "otherwise they would have kept tricking me all the time", she added sending the four in the back in hysterics.  
  
".Bill and Fleur are dating." continued Ron when they stopped laughing.  
  
"They look so good together!" added Ginny. "And you should hear Bill -Fleur said that, Fleur did that."  
  
"Fred and George were complaining that they couldn't talk about anything else with him." Said Ron.  
  
"So they gave him some canary cream so he could keep chirping about Fleur and make it sound good" laughed Ginny.  
  
"What about the Order?" Harry asked.  
  
"Oh, it's great!" they heard Mr. Weasley say from his front chair. "We managed to keep You-Know-Who from putting his plans into practice."  
  
"That's wonderful!" said Harry. "Do you still have your headquarters at. number 12?" he suddenly wasn't so jolly.  
  
"Yes", answered Mrs. Weasley. "And we finally managed to get Mrs. Black of the wall. Although we nearly had to demolish the house!"  
  
Harry started laughing, though a bit forced. Sirius's death was still too fresh in his mind.  
  
"Yes, we were all sick of somebody who yelled 'Filth! Scum! Half-breeds, mutants, freaks! Besmirching the house of my fathers' every time we passed by" said Mr. Weasley.  
  
"They should put her as a house-alarm!" said Hermione.  
  
"House-alarm?!" said Mr. Weasley enthusiastically. "How does one work?"  
  
Hermione started explaining everything to him and when they finally got to the Burrow -the Weasley home- she was nearly out of breath.  
  
"Harry, Hermione, Ginny" said Ron, "come, let me show you my room!"  
  
They giggled. Of course they all knew Ron's room, but it was obvious that he wanted to talk to them.  
  
"Well, go ahead, while I cook dinner!" Mrs. Weasley said smiling. "I'm sure you have a lot to talk about!"  
  
The four went upstairs and after Ron closed the door to his room he turned towards the others.  
  
"Guys, remember when I told you that something weird was happening?" he asked.  
  
"Of course! What's going on?" said Hermione and Harry together, while Ginny smiled mysteriously.  
  
"Well, two things, actually." He said. "One: there's a new guy who dad and mum talk about. Somebody named Jack Towers. He's a weird guy, at least it seems so from what they say. He looks young, but seems to know many things and is at the right place at the right time."  
  
"And the second thing?" asked Harry noticing that Ron stopped talking for a short while.  
  
"Well, mum and dad said something about a green torch or something like that. They."  
  
"The Green Flamed Torch!" cried Hermione.  
  
"Shh! Hermione, we're not supposed to know this!" Ron said desperately.  
  
"Sorry!" she said, a bit embarrassed.  
  
"What do you know about it?" asked Harry.  
  
"It's a myth", she started to tell them. "About a torch that serves good only, giving it power. But after it serves it's goal, it disappears, as if it had a mind of it's own. What did your parents tell you about it?" she asked Ron who looked amazed.  
  
"Well, they didn't tell me anything. Fred and George were the ones that told me things and gave me some Extendable Ears."  
  
"Whatever!" Hermione said nervously. "What did they say?"  
  
"That Dumbledore said it might be close to Hogwarts, waiting to be found."  
  
"What if it's found by somebody evil ?" asked Harry curiously.  
  
"It won't be", whispered Hermione. "The Green Flame Torch can only be found by the good. And if anyone on the dark side would find it, it wouldn't help him. It helps only the good, remember?! But I thought it was a myth."  
  
"Apparently, it's not", said Ginny.  
  
"Wow, this is news!" said Hermione. "The Green Flame Torch!"  
  
"Don't forget Jack Towers!" Ginny said. "He helped the order a few times, and he's very real."  
  
"And do you know what the weird part is?" asked Ron looking a bit pale. "They found a few people talking about this Jack guy, but they couldn't find anything else about him: no address, no job, no nothing. Just in some of the statements at the Ministry. Helping people, most of the times."  
  
"And do you know what's even weirder?" asked Ginny, making the others look curiously at her. "These statements go way back in time. A few decades. And mum and dad said that he looked quite young. And every person who mentioned him said almost the same things about him: that he is tall and has black eyes and hair and is usually dressed in black."  
  
"A few decades?" asked Hermione.  
  
"Maybe he's a Metamorphmagus" suggested Ron.  
  
"No, he isn't" she answered. "Or. Who knows. Maybe he is" she said gazing somewhere in space  
  
At that moment, Mrs. Weasley entered the room saying:  
  
"Fred and George are here and dinner is ready. Bill should be here soon."  
  
"Fred and George are looking for a house of their own now, but they still live here", explained Ginny.  
  
They got down to the table and Mr. Weasley greeted them happily.  
  
"I heard that Dumbledore found another Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher."  
  
"Really?!" said Ron. "So soon? I thought he wouldn't find one this year."  
  
"Yeah, with Umbridge leaving too", they heard Fred's voice from a bathroom.  
  
"She was the most cursed one of all" said George.  
  
"I think we had something to do with that." said Fred coming out.  
  
"The Skiving Snackboxes were a complete success" replied his twin.  
  
"How many did we sell?"  
  
"Oh, about a million."  
  
"By the way, has anyone seen Umbridge?" asked Fred.  
  
"No, why?" asked Ginny.  
  
"We definitely need to thank her!" George said.  
  
"What?!" Harry and Ron said together.  
  
"Well, she brought us a huge profit" the twins replied.  
  
Everybody started giggling. After managing to control their giggles, Harry asked curiously:  
  
"So who's the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher?"  
  
"A woman called Iris Rose" said Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"What a flowery name! Neville will definitely love her" smiled Ginny.  
  
"How is she?" asked Ron.  
  
"Oh, a wonderful girl!" Mrs. Weasley replied. "I think she's not one year over 25, but she knows many things. I really like her. And, with a bit of luck, she might stay there for more than one year!"  
  
"Yeah.", said George. "Harry, since you came to Hogwarts the Defence teachers are changing like crazy!"  
  
"One dead, one quit, one with a lost memory, one locked up in a trunk and impersonated and one attacked by both students and centaurs!" said Fred cheerfully. "We should write 'The Register of Defence teachers while Harry Potter went to Hogwarts'".  
  
"So that we could remember them." completed George.  
  
"You know, I suddenly whish Snape would have taken the job", said Ginny.  
  
"Are you crazy?!" nearly yelled Ron. "Snape?! As the Defence teacher?! Sometimes, Ginny, I wonder what is wrong with you."  
  
"I just thought that he'd be leaving in a year too, like all the others. And maybe it'd be worth it."  
  
Everybody laughed relieved.  
  
"For a moment there, sis, I thought you'd be going of track", said Fred.  
  
"Yeah!" said his twin. "Or it'd be even better if Snape would go away on his own."  
  
"No such luck!" almost everybody said together.  
  
Mrs. Weasley put the food on the table, and, as usually, made Harry eat as much as two normal people.  
  
In the next days, they were all chatting about the Green Flame Torch, Jack Towers, the Order and the O.W.L. results. Those results still hadn't came and Harry, Ron and Hermione were starting to really worry about them.  
  
-- -- -- -- --- --  
  
Thanks to everybody who reviewed my last chapter- Natalie, Naomie, harryforeva and dracomalfoy23-  
  
Naomie, I'll answer your question -why does Harry know that Sirius is alive in my other story and in this one he doesn't?-:  
  
Because Harry will get to know that Sirius is alive, but that will happen in the future, during the school year. I think I'll place the whole thing in October. So, now, Amala doesn't even know about Sirius. The 'Behind the Veil' story will be mentioned, this time the version that got to Harry, Hermione and Ron. It'll be there. ( 


	3. OWLs

Disclaimer on the first chapter, I'm sick of writing it every time I update.  
  
Chapter 3: O.W.L.s  
  
It was to 21st of July and the sun was shining happily through the clouds when four owls got at the morning table of the Weasleys. Harry, Ron and Hermione opened them as soon as possible and Harry shouted in extreme surprise:  
  
"The O.W.L. results! I. I."  
  
"What is it, Harry?" asked Mrs. Weasley seeing his shocked expression.  
  
"I received an 'Outstanding' in Potions!"  
  
"What?!" Ron, Hermione, Ginny and the Weasley twins said together, trying to take the parchment from his hands. Now, that was a record!  
  
But soon after, the other fifth graders started looking on their own parchments.  
  
"Wow!" Harry said "9 O.W.L.s"  
  
"I didn't get 9", said Ron looking a bit sad. "I only got 8."  
  
"What did you fail?" asked Hermione curiously.  
  
"Divination. Not a big surprise either. How about you, how many did you get?"  
  
"10", she answered.  
  
"Wow, Hermione", said an admiring Ron. "Wow!"  
  
"What grades did you get?" asked Hermione.  
  
"Exceeded Expectations at Transfiguration-worked a lot there-, Charms, Potions Care of Magical Creatures and History of Magic, Outstanding at Defence -see, Harry, you were a great teacher!- and acceptable at Herbology and Astronomy. Oh and a Dreadful at Divination. How about you, Hermione?"  
  
"Well." she started saying, "Outstanding at Charms, Transfiguration, Herbology, Defence, Potions, Care of Magical Creatures and History of Magic, Exceeded Expectations at Ancient Runes, Arithmancy and Astronomy."  
  
"Wow!" Ron and Harry said together.  
  
"You, Harry?" she asked him blushing.  
  
"Outstanding at Defence Against the Dark Arts, Potions, Exceeded Expectations at Transfiguration, Herbology, Care of Magical Creatures and Charms and Acceptable at Astronomy, Divination and History of Magic."  
  
"That's it!" Fred cried outraged. "We're never going to speak to you again! How could you do such a thing?! Get 8, 9 and 10 O.W.L.s!"  
  
"Indeed!" added George. "Ron, you are no longer our brother! First, a Prefect, now an 8 O.W.L. boy!"  
  
"Well", said Mrs. Weasley sounding quite upset, "if you couldn't make more O.W.L.s , I don't see why your brother wouldn't!"  
  
"Just kidding, mum", said Fred quite despaired.  
  
"Yeah", added George.  
  
"So. so." started Harry, "I think I'll be able to try an Auror's career."  
  
"They're the best, Harry", said Hermione seriously." If you want to be an Auror, you must work really hard and earn great N.E.W.T's, too."  
  
"Give the guy a break, Hermione!" Ron said exasperatedly. "He'll make it! Let's just wait 'till we get back to school with the 'what you have to do' lesson, o.k.?"  
  
Hermione gave him a killing look and didn't say anything. After a few moments of tensioned silence, Fred said:  
  
"Before heads will fall, would you like us to show you our newest inventions?"  
  
"Yeah, sure!" Harry said as quickly as possible, happy that he could find a way out of the situation.  
  
Fred and George got up and Harry, Ron and Hermione followed their example.  
  
"You'll love them!", Fred said grinning and Mrs. Weasley looked a little terrified, but said nothing.  
  
When they got into the twin's room, Harry realized that he had never been there. It had a lot of shelves on the walls, a cauldron with a magical fire burning under it, and a lot of things spread all over the room. The beds were lost somewhere under many other objects.  
  
"Sorry it's a bit messy", George said.  
  
"But we don't have enough space to put everything", Fred continued, grinning.  
  
"A bit messy?!" mouthed Hermione, looking around.  
  
Suddenly, the cauldron started shivering and the twins hurried towards it and put something inside.  
  
"What is that?" asked Hermione curiously.  
  
"You don't want to know." Ron whispered.  
  
"That", said Fred, "is a new product!"  
  
"One of our finest, indeed!" continued George.  
  
"Chocolate!"  
  
"But not just any chocolate."  
  
"Well, it tastes like chocolate."  
  
"Smells like chocolate."  
  
"Looks like chocolate."  
  
"But once eaten, it gives the eater a weird feeling."  
  
"As if he or she would be soaking wet!"  
  
"But that's just a feeling."  
  
"So everybody asks why you're trying to dry yourself all the time!"  
  
"Effect lasts half an hour!"  
  
"And starts taking place in five to ten minutes!"  
  
"It's one of our least dangerous ones!"  
  
The three laughed.  
  
"So, what else do you have?" asked Harry.  
  
"A new type of Skiving Snackboxes!" said George proudly.  
  
"Cough and Sneeze cake!"  
  
"Interesting", said Harry.  
  
"We also have Horror Quills!" smiled George happily. "We worked a lot to get those!"  
  
He took out a huge, black quill, looking a lot like Umbridge's detention quill.  
  
"What do they do?" Harry said looking a bit afraid.  
  
"Try it!" Fred said, grinning.  
  
Harry took the quill and a piece of parchment and started writing on a paper with it. It seemed a lot like Umbridge's quill, too. The writing was blood red and, when he looked on his arm, he saw the same writing there, too. But this writing didn't go away. George took a napkin and wiped Harry's arm. Harry's eyes got larger and larger. The writing disappeared.  
  
"It's red ink!" said Fred, looking quite pleased of himself. "We got the idea from Umbridge! Too bad she left, or we would have replaced her quill with this one!"  
  
"When Lee told us how detention with her is, we decided we didn't want anything like it."  
  
The three looked amazed. It was a great idea.  
  
"Now we sell it on Diagon Alley", said George. "Maybe we'll go there when you'll collect your school stuff!"  
  
After adding to the new invention list a few parchments that made the writing on them disappear after a few minutes, a few Crazy Quills that would write for themselves, like the Quick Quotes Quills, but the exact opposite of what you wanted them to, Change Frog Cards that would change the images inside them, so that you'd think you got some really rare wizards and end-up with Dumbledores, Stone Frogs that were leaping around like the chocolate ones, but were hard as rock and Red Head Hats, that changed your head's color to red when you put them on, they finally went out of the room, promising the twins to visit them on Diagon Alley. The two boys Disapparated afterwards to their shop.  
  
"Those two guys give me the creeps, sometimes", Ron said after watching them go.  
  
The days at the Burrow were going fast and Harry didn't want to return to Hogwarts. yet. He loved being with Ron and Hermione and Sirius's death was easier to bear with them by his side.  
  
On the 31st of July, Harry woke up surrounded by gifts. He got a book from Hermione -what a surprise!- called 'Great Mysteries of the Wizards', a huge box of Honeydukes' chocolates from Ron, a Birthday Card from Ginny, a few pairs of self-cleaning socks from Mrs. Weasley, a Birthday Card and a few Honeydukes chocolates from Mr. Weasley and some Skiving Snackboxes and Crazy Quills from Fred and George. Life was good. That day, Mrs. Weasley made him a huge birthday cake and they all celebrated his birthday. Tonks, Lupin, Moody and the elder Weasley brothers also popped up -literally! They Apparated! - and they had a lot of fun. but somebody was still missing. Sirius.  
  
On the 10th of August, a new set of Hogwarts letters came, this time telling them what they need for next year.  
  
"Well, we need a few new books, don't we?" asked Hermione, checking her list. 'The Advanced Book of Spells, grade 1', by Miranda Goshawk, looks that we're at advanced Transfiguration now."  
  
"The 'Protective Spells-Theory and Practice' by Maude Purelight.", continued Harry. "This time, I have a feeling we'll also do practice, no more DA, I guess."  
  
"Look at the one for Potions!" said Hermione. 'A Hundred Potions for the Masters'. We're doomed, Harry!"  
  
"Something's not right." said Ron slowly. "I also have that book!"  
  
"What do you mean 'it's not right'?" asked Hermione. "You're taking Potions, aren't you?"  
  
"Well, yes, but I got an Exceeded Expectations! And Snape doesn't accept anything below Outstanding!"  
  
"It is weird", said Hermione. "Snape isn't the person to just let you in because he's nice..."  
  
"Not at all!" said Ginny.  
  
"Oh, well.", restarted Hermione. "'Charms for the Charmers' by Emerald Blissghoul and 'The Book of Creatures' by Polly Griffin. That's about it."  
  
"Yep!" said Ron, looking closely at his list.  
  
"We should go there in two days, maybe three." said Ginny.  
  
"Maybe we'll even see your brothers' shop!" said Hermione excitedly.  
  
Everybody was staring at her now.  
  
"You were so against them braking rules and everything. Now, you're excited?!" said Ron, amazed.  
  
"Well, they had great magic things. I don't agree with the things they come up, but I must admit that it is great magic!!!" she answered.  
  
-----  
  
To Naomie: I'm glad I helped ( And we will have Snape, believe me! Amala likes the guy. And Towers turns up to be one weird guy, you'll see what I mean.  
  
To Haryyforeva: I'm glad you like it, hope you like this one.  
  
O.K., guys, I'll be gone on vacation until September, I guess, but don't worry, I'll be back and posting when I'm home! 


	4. Diagonalley and Tower Business

Disclaimer and dedication on the first page.  
  
Chapter four: Diagon Alley  
  
In two days, at ten o' clock in the morning, the four of them plus Mrs. Weasley were standing in front of the fireplace.  
  
"Now, you!" she said looking at them like a hen at little chicks, "speak loud and clear 'Weasley Wizard Wheezes', o.k.?!"  
  
"I wish they chose a less tongue-twisting name." mumbled Ron without his mother noticing.  
  
"Ron, you go first!" she added.  
  
Ron threw a bit of Floo Powder in the fire, stepped inside and said "Weasley Wizard Wheezes".  
  
"Ginny, you next" Mrs. Weasley continued.  
  
Ginny repeated her brother's steps and after that Hermione went through.  
  
"Well, you too, Harry, dear!" Mrs. Weasley said and Harry threw the Floo Powder inside then got in himself. The flames were comfortably warm and he said as fast as possible: "Weasley Wizard Wheezes!" He then started spinning at a very high speed and he closed his eyes. After a while, he stopped spinning and was thrown face-forward out a fireplace.  
  
"He, he!" he heard two voices as he was getting out, "Ickle Harry made it out fine and decided to kiss the earth gratefully!"  
  
Harry got up and looked at the speakers. The Weasley twins were grinning and somewhere behind them were Ron, Hermione and Ginny.  
  
"Welcome to our humble shop, o, grateful one!" Fred added. Harry looked around him and saw a room full of different objects put all around the room, with small labels under them. He noticed Skiving Snackboxes, Extendable Ears and other things he knew and a few other things he didn't know.  
  
The twins showed him shelf full of different jars.  
  
"Canary Cream and later versions: Crow Cream, Rabbit Cream and Hawk Cream."  
  
At that moment, Mrs. Weasley emerged from the fireplace.  
  
"Hello, Fred, George, dear" she said.  
  
"Hi, mum!" George and Fred answered.  
  
Suddenly Harry realized that Ginny, Hermione and Ron were no longer there.  
  
"Uh, guys?" he asked looking at the twins. "Where are the others?"  
  
"In the other room", Fred said grinning. "We have a few other things there."  
  
"Larger things", George said and they lead him to the other room, opening a door that wasn't noticeable from where Harry stood.  
  
Once entered, Harry saw that this room was not much different, but it didn't have the counter or the big door towards Diagon Alley. It looked rather like an old storeroom. In a corner there were a few Headless Hats of different colors and sizes and a few headless Ron, Hermione and Ginny as well.  
  
"Hey guys, careful with those!" said George.  
  
On the shelves he saw a few Horror Quills and a few crystal globes, much like Trelawney's.  
  
"What are those?" he asked the twins.  
  
"Crystal Delights" answered Fred. "Try one!"  
  
Harry took a globe and gazed into it. Deep from the shadows appeared a huge, black dog.  
  
"The Grim!" Harry said, amazed.  
  
"Keep looking, Harry", George said grinning.  
  
The Grim walked slowly and joined a Harry and they started walking together. Then Harry took out his wand and sent a stupefying spell towards the Grim, who was petrified.  
  
"That's for everybody who goes to Divination class next year!" the twins said. "We have a few things that appear inside and if you switch a real one with one of ours, you might get a confused Trelawney. Because, of course, she'll look inside and see something like this!"  
  
"A petrified Grim means." Ron started from behind Harry. "What would she say? Oh, yeah, that you will suffer a most tragic accident and die in most horrible pain, because you'll try to kill your death. Won't you Harry?! Or that you die and fail as a ghost"  
  
"Probably", he replied grinning.  
  
Harry put the globe back into its place and looked around. A few Weasley's Wildfire Whiz-bangs stood on the shelves and Harry grinned remembering what a hard time they gave to the last years' Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. In another corner of the room stood some innocent-looking jackets.  
  
"What are those?" he asked the Weasley twins.  
  
"Zit Jackets." Fred replied. "Mum doesn't like them. If you take one on, you'll get a lot of zits immediately on your face. I mean many, many zits. Once you take them off, the zits get of."  
  
"In about three days" Ron added.  
  
"Right you are, little brother!" George said, grinning.  
  
A lot of other things were there to be seen and Harry had felt as if he had spent there just a few minutes when Mrs. Weasley said they should go pick up their school stuff.  
  
They got out of the shop and into Diagon Alley and Harry saw again the sea of wizards walking around. After they went to Flourish and Blots and bought their new books, they went to the Apothecary to fill their potion ingredient stocks and to Madam Malkin's for new robes. After that, they were about to go back to the joke shop, but a young man stopped them on their way there.  
  
"You're Harry Potter!" he said grinning.  
  
"Uh. Yes, I am." Harry answered puzzled.  
  
"I believed you from the beginning." The man said with a calm voice.  
  
He wore a long, black robe and had twinkling blue eyes and spiky black hair. There was something about him that made the Weasleys, Harry and Hermione stay there and listen.  
  
"Did you?" Mrs. Weasley asked, trying to be sarcastic, but not managing to.  
  
"Yes", he said looking at her and Mrs. Weasley felt as if she were x-rayed. "Mr. Potter", he said after he finished his short scan, "I've got something that might interest you."  
  
"What?" Harry asked. If the man was trying to sell him something, he'd probably refuse and they'd be on their way.  
  
"A few Golden Amulets" he answered. "I know about your fight against He-Who- Must-Not-Be-Named and I think that you might need one."  
  
"What's a Golden Amulet?" Harry asked.  
  
"It's a special amulet that is supposed to put you in contact with great light forces if you need it and glow red if there's danger around", Hermione replied.  
  
"You friend is right, Mr. Potter", the man said. "And I offer you one for five Galleons and for every extra two and a half Galleons."  
  
"They can't be real, not at that price." said Mrs. Weasley. "Come, kids."  
  
As they went a few steps forward, getting away from the man, he said in a slow, cool voice:  
  
"They are real"  
  
They turned back. He took out four golden necklaces with medium-sized golden circle-shaped medallions attached. "You needn't worry about that."  
  
His eyes were twinkling dangerously and Harry wished they never met the man. He seemed a bit too dangerous now.  
  
"I'll give these four to you for ten Galleons."  
  
"I'll take one" said Hermione, taking out her money.  
  
"Yeah, me to", said Harry. He didn't really believe that they would help in any way, but he would have given anything to get rid of the man who looked dangerous and mad now.  
  
"And two for us", said Mrs. Weasley, taking out five Galleons.  
  
The man smiled, took the money and gave them the golden necklaces. Each of the four kids took one and then the man said in a more friendly voice:  
  
"Thank you! I hope that you won't need them." And turned away, moving towards another group, saying with a friendly voice: "Hello! Could I interest you in some dragon teeth or Baruffio's Brain Elixir?"  
  
"Well, that was odd", said Hermione when they walked away. "I have to study this, see if it's real."  
  
"Not at that price, Hermione", Ron said. "Real ones value at least ten times the first price he asked for them. That's at least fifty Galleons. And this guy gave them for five Galleons and then two and a half Galleons. No way could these be real."  
  
Harry looked at his. The attached golden ring had a rune inside.  
  
"Hey, Hermione", he said, "what's this rune?"  
  
"Golden Amulets have a certain rune inside that shows what force they'll call if needed." She said like reading from a book. "But I've never seen this one before. They must be fake. Oh, well."  
  
They went back to 'Wesley Wizard Wheezes' and forgot all about the weird amulets, studying the Weasley products. But that night Hermione reminded them all about them, because she kept looking at hers during the dinner, driving Ron crazy.  
  
The next day, Hermione checked in all her books the rune on the Golden Amulets, finding nothing on them.  
  
"Hermione, will you stop it?! They're fake!!!" Ron yelled madly at lunch.  
  
"I don't know." she whispered. "Who would draw a rune that doesn't exist? I mean, if I'd make a fake Amulet, I'd put one of the common runes on it."  
  
"It just proves that the idiot didn't study anything before selling them!" Ron said. "Really, Hermione, why do you bother?"  
  
Personally, Harry agreed with Ron. But just as he was about to say something, an owl appeared at Ron's window.  
  
"Hermes?!" Ron said and opened the window. The owl flew in, let the letter and flew out. "Let's see what my no-good brother says this time!"  
  
Harry and Hermione looked over his shoulders and read the letter.  
  
"Dear brothers, parents and sister,  
  
I would like to say I am sorry for my behavior towards you last year, but I had to gain Fudge's trust and try to convince him that Dumbledore has the right side. Indeed, I might have succeeded even without that attack at the Ministry. I am glad, though, that everything is explained. Now, of course, I had to act badly towards the family and couldn't have made my way towards Fudge by sticking to you. I had to convince him and even myself that I thought he was right and then show him that Dumbledore was right.  
  
I am sure you all agree with me. I couldn't have stayed in the family and not be against Fudge and that would have been against my career at the Ministry.  
  
Of course, I knew all along that Dumbledore would be alright and that is why I joined the Ministry. And I knew that Umbridge would be out of Hogwarts soon. I daresay that Harry wasn't taken to St. Mungo's because of my words for him. And I believed his story all along, of course!  
  
I am sure you'll be pleased with my share of the things.  
  
Percy  
  
"Well, it's an improvement", Harry said.  
  
"The git betrayed us all and now wants to be forgiven and still acts like an idiot!" said Ron, a little mad "Listen: 'I believed his story all along'! Ha! Remember what he said in that letter last year, that I should stay away from you? Remember he said Dumbledore might not still be at Hogwarts for a long while?! And he talks as if he did the right thing!"  
  
"He's an ego centered person, you don't expect him to crawl at your feet and say that he's sorry, do you?" asked Hermione patiently. "But it means that he wants to be back in the family and he apologized. a bit, so I guess it's pretty good!  
  
"I guess so" Ron said and pocketed the letter. "I'll take this to mum."  
  
It's hard to describe exactly the reaction of Mrs. Weasley. She was happy that Percy was back in the family and a bit mad at him for apologizing so late and making himself look like a hero. And she was crying on Ginny's shoulder before they could even blink.  
  
Mr. Weasley, who saw the letter later and hadn't met Percy at work, was mad at him for being too proud for admitting that he was wrong, but he too was excited that he was starting to do it.  
  
Fred and George said that it was to be expected that he'd still be a moron even when he decided he's apologizing. Mrs. Weasley nearly hit them with the frying pan.  
  
In two weeks, they'd be going back to Hogwarts and everything seemed to be o.k. Harry couldn't help but smile that night in his bed.  
  
He closed his eyes and tried to go to sleep, but he realized he was thirsty. But he had no intention of getting up whatsoever! The bed was so warm and he was nearly asleep. But no, the thirst just didn't go away! After two minutes of fighting a lost battle with the enemy, he got out of bed, put his slippers on and went downstairs for a glass of water.  
  
But just as he was about to enter the kitchen, he heard voices from inside.  
  
"I don't like the way Percy apologized, Molly. We can't tell him about the Green Flame Torch. Not yet."  
  
"I don't care how he did it, he apologized, didn't he, Arthur? And he is our son!"  
  
"He might be our son, but don't forget that relatives can betray us. Dumbledore's brother made some weird experiences on a goat, Hagrid's mum is a giantess, Harry's aunt and uncle are. as they are, Sirius was killed by his cousin and his brother was a Death Eater. If you are in the same family, that doesn't mean you have the same ideas."  
  
"But Percy isn't our brother or cousin or aunt or uncle or parent! He's our son, Arthur! We raised him, I know him. He might be a bit selfish and."  
  
"Molly, he left us for Fudge one year ago! You surely haven't forgotten."  
  
"I haven't. I guess you're right Arthur." She sighed. "What else have you found out about the Green Flame Torch?  
  
"It is somewhere around Hogwarts, our sources tell us. Waiting for the right person to find it. But none of us managed to find out where it is exactly by now. "  
  
"And what about Jack Towers?"  
  
"He popped up when Kingsley was in a tower in Scotland, listening to a meeting. The Death Eaters nearly found him when Towers appeared in the middle of the circle they had formed out of chairs and said: "well, well, if it isn't some Dung Eaters."  
  
"He called them Dung Eaters?" Mrs. Weasley chuckled.  
  
"Yes, he did... When they shot spells at him, he simply jumped out of the way, on the ceiling. Kingsley swore he had never seen such a thing"  
  
"On the ceiling?!"  
  
"Weird, isn't it? I've never heard of things like this either. Must be a new spell. Then Towers said again: "and I thought that me and the werewolves were the only ones meeting here tonight." It was a full moon and Kingsley said that the Death Eaters stopped dead in their tracks. "Good thing that you're here! We'll have a party!" Towers continued and Kingsley said that he was grinning deviously. "Mayhowl, if you please enter?" And Kingsley said he nearly fainted. The door opened and a huge, black wolf entered, followed by some other wolves. The Death Eaters were outnumbered and Apparated away, but Kingsley was glued there. Towers jumped on the ground and the wolf turned into a human.  
  
"An Animagus?"  
  
"Probably. The rest of the wolves disappeared. "Not a moment too late, May" Towers said to the other man. "Scared the shit out of them. Nice illusions. Were you eavesdropping again?" "Yes and if I weren't, what would you have done?" "Ran away like a headless chicken in trouble, my old friend. Thanks." Then the two left, Towers looking for a second at Kingsley."  
  
"Weird man, Towers."  
  
"Isn't he?"  
  
///////////  
  
Hoped you liked it! And please review. It's that little button down.  
  
To Naomie: thanks for reading my work regularly and it's great to know that someone gives a damn :::sniff:::  
  
To harryforeva: thanks for reviewing! And glad you like it!  
  
A/N: Amala is my character from 'Behind the Veil'  
  
To the Red Dragons Order: Oh my God! Oh my God! :::jumps up and down with huge enthusiasm!!!::: You. You. You read my story!!! And you liked it!!! Oh my God!!!  
  
As for Towers, yeah, he's a bit like Rex Chase, but, um, well, the idea of Jack Towers appeared to me before I read your story, while listening to the song 'The Russians' by Sting.  
  
And to answer your question why I hadn't told you about this story sooner, it's because I hadn't thought about it seriously until now. 


	5. The New Student

The Disclaimer and the dedication are on the first page.  
  
Chapter 5: The New Student  
  
The rest of the vacation passed uneventfully -well, almost, Percy was acting friendlier and came around once in a while. Yet he still acted as if he were a war hero.  
  
On the 1st of September, everybody was packing at super-high speeds and everything was a huge chaos, as usual. Things were flying all over the place, everybody was asking where a thing or another was, owls were hooting, Crookshanks was meowing, the twins were around there, nobody knows why, a trunk fell down the stairs, with Ginny getting slightly injured in the process, an old book of Lockhart's accidentally fell from a shelf on Mrs. Weasley's head and, when, finally, they all moved towards London in Mr. Weasley's Ford Anglia, things settled down.  
  
Mr. Weasley was driving and looked overall happy.  
  
"Yes, Fudge is acting much nicer towards everybody else now, you know!" he said. "He likes Dumbledore again now and he's listening to everything he says. It's weird, actually. After all the time he spent trying to make him look like an old man who's losing his grip!"  
  
"And how's the Order?" asked Harry, wanting to know more about the subject.  
  
"Great! We had help from many unexpected sources!" he answered. "Two Death Eaters talking too loudly next to one of the Order, a lost letter, Jack Towers popped up once when we needed help and somebody from You-Know-Who's inner circle turning against them."  
  
"Who?!" asked Harry curiously. This thing he didn't know, although the others were old news.  
  
"Well, that's just it, we don't know", said Mr. Weasley. "It's weird, you'd think he or she would have contacted us by now."  
  
They spent the rest of the time talking about different things and when they finally made it to King's Cross, they seemed to have talked about everything possible. They made their way to Platform 9 and walked through the barrier separating Platforms 9 and 10, getting, as usual, to Platform 9 ¾ where the Hogwarts Express waited for students to get in.  
  
Kids and parents were walking all around with luggage and pets. Owls hooted, cats meowed, kids screamed 'good-bye', parents replied, elder students were calling each other and, generally, everything was noisy.  
  
"Hi, guys!" they heard somebody yell from far way.  
  
"Hi, Dean, hi, Seamus!" they replied looking towards them.  
  
"Hello!" said a boy walking quickly past them.  
  
"Hi, Ernie!"  
  
They made their way to the train and hugged and were hugged by Mrs. and Mr. Weasley again and hurried into the train, looking for an empty compartment. They put their luggage down and sat, looking out the window, waving good- bye to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. The train started moving slowly after that and, just as they were about to get comfortable, Luna Lovegood appeared in the door and said in her usual dreamy voice:  
  
"Hello, mind if I sit with you?"  
  
"No, come in!" they said showing her a seat.  
  
She sat down and took out the 'Quibbler', her father's magazine. As usually, she had a weird appearance: a necklace of weird-looking rocks, a wand stuck behind her ear for safe-keeping and some weird earrings about which Harry couldn't make up his mind whether they looked like cherries or hearts.  
  
"How was your summer?" she asked, looking at Harry.  
  
"Fine, thank you" he answered. "How about yours?"  
  
"Wonderful. People sent letters saying that they read our article with you and it was real. Now we sell many more copies. Dad is very pleased."  
  
Harry smiled and Luna started reading 'the Quibbler' again.  
  
After about five minutes, Ron and Hermione went off towards the Prefect carriage, but came back in twenty minutes.  
  
"We don't have to do anything this year", Ron said cheerfully. "On the train, I mean. The fifth years got it covered."  
  
Before he could say anything else, a girl came in and said happily:  
  
"Mind if I stay here? There's no free space left in this train."  
  
"Come in!" they answered, looking straight at her.  
  
She was about Harry's age, had shoulder-long black hair and gold earrings and looked overall nice.  
  
"I don't remember seeing you around the school," Ron said. "Who are you?"  
  
She giggled and said:  
  
"My name is Amala Wright and there's a good reason for not seeing me around Hogwarts. I'm a transfer student from Transylvania. Who are you?"  
  
"I'm Ginny Weasley", the girl replied. "That's my brother, Ron and those are Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Luna Lovegood."  
  
"Harry Potter!" she said smiling widely. "I heard about you. But who hasn't?! And it's nice to meet you too, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Luna", she said reaching out her hand towards each of them and shaking it while she said their names.  
  
"So, how come you came here?" Ginny asked. "We didn't have any students coming here except for starting school, as much as I remember."  
  
Amala smiled sadly and said:  
  
"My parents moved to China and I didn't want to go with them. I live now with my Muggle uncle, who's British. But I miss my parents."  
  
"What did your parents do in Transylvania?" Ron asked.  
  
"They took care of dragons."  
  
"Really?!" Ron said grinning. "Do you know my brother, Charlie Weasley?"  
  
"I think I do." She answered after a moment of thinking. "Is he red- haired?"  
  
"Yes, we all are!" said Ron.  
  
"He's a nice guy. Saw him a few times when I visited my mum and dad at work"  
  
They chatted happily for a few minutes about dragons and everything related or not related about that subject. Harry and Hermione listened to the conversation, and then the bushy-haired girl asked:  
  
"What school did you go to?"  
  
"Magalia"  
  
"I heard about it. It's a good school."  
  
"Not as good as Hogwarts, out of what I heard", she answered, making Hermione blush. "But my parents taught me many things, so I hope I'll be good enough for Hogwarts".  
  
"'Course you will!" said Ron happily and Hermione stared at him.  
  
They spent the next few hours telling her about things that happened in Hogwarts and she told them about her school.  
  
"What's your favorite subject?" she asked them. "What are you good at?"  
  
"I'm good at Defence Against the Dark Arts", answered Harry. "Hermione is good at everything, Ron is good at Defence too and Ginny is good at Charms and Defence. How about you, Luna?" he asked.  
  
"After last year, at Defence", she said dreamily and Harry felt a wave of pride. So, he was a good teacher!  
  
"How about you, Amala?" Hermione asked curiously.  
  
"Well, I love Charms and Transfiguration, but I'm also great at Potions. Not too good at Defence, I'm afraid, like you guys."  
  
"Potions?!" the Gryffindors asked.  
  
"Yes", she answered puzzled seeing the amazement on their faces. "What?!"  
  
"We have a most horrible teacher at Potions.." Harry answered.  
  
"And he hates every Gryffindor in general Harry in particular" completed Ron.  
  
"Why?" asked the girl curiously.  
  
"Who knows?" answered Hermione.  
  
"Because he's a git, that's why" said Ron hatefully.  
  
"I'm trying to picture him", Amala said. "How does he look like?"  
  
"Tall, ugly and slimy", replied Ron making everybody laugh, especially Luna. Harry thought it was funny to have such a weird person next to you.  
  
"He's black haired and has a huge hooked nose." Said Hermione after they finished laughing.  
  
"Slimy black hair", said Ginny, making them all laugh again.  
  
"I think I have a good picture", Amala said. "I'm curious if it looks any bit like the original."  
  
They spent a good day, having fun and telling Amala about Hogwarts. Different people were coming to visit and Ginny left to stay with her fellow fifth years.  
  
Finally, in the evening the train stopped and everybody went out. The weather was beautiful, the stars were shinning and the air was warm. A familiar voice said, somewhere in front of them:  
  
"Firs' years over 'ere! Firs' years 'ere!"  
  
"Well, Hagrid is here!" said Hermione smiling.  
  
"Who's Hagrid?" asked Amala.  
  
"He's the Care of Magical Creatures teacher", answered Harry. "And he's a very good guy and our friend. Has a passion for monsters, though."  
  
"He's huge!" Amala said, her eyes wide-opened but then looked at them and added. "Uh. sorry. I guess I. Is he the half-giant?"  
  
"Yes", said Ginny chuckling from somewhere around "And he is taller then normal men. Ron, have you seen Dean?"  
  
"No, can't say I have!"  
  
"Then, I'll be coming with you" she decided.  
  
Amala was still staring at Hagrid.  
  
"Wow!" she said smiling. "Can't wait to have Care of Magical Creatures!"  
  
The others smiled and led her towards the carriages.  
  
"Wow! Thestrals!" Amala said enthusiastically. "I love them!"  
  
The reptile-like horses with wings were looking around and Amala went towards one of them and petted it slowly. Harry and Ron were laughing about her total excitement about everything.  
  
"You can see them too?" asked Luna dreamily.  
  
"Yes, I saw a man die on a hospital bed once and could see them ever since." She answered.  
  
"Somebody. close to you?" asked Ginny.  
  
"Didn't even know the guy.", Amala replied. "Let's get in, shall we?"  
  
Amala, Ron, Hermione and Harry got in the carriage -Ginny managed to find Dean- and it started going towards the castle. Amala looked surprised and extremely excited. Ron kept blowing his nose to hide his laughter. Harry had to admit it was funny. She was hyperactive, jumping all over the carriage. Luna didn't even hide her giggles and Hermione was smiling amused too.  
  
"Wow, that's a wonderful place for a school!"  
  
"Yes, it is!" Ron answered, chuckling, and pinned his Prefect badge on his chest.  
  
"Wow, you're a Prefect!" the girl said enthusiastically. "Everything is such a surprise!"  
  
Harry could hardly hold back his laughter. He doubted that even the first years were so surprised and enthusiastic. They got to the school shortly after that and entered the Great Hall, heading towards the Gryffindor table. The Great Hall was greatly decorated, as always, and Harry smiled. He was home again. Amala was looking around the Hall with big, surprised eyes.  
  
"The Sorting Ceremony will begin in a short while, so we should probably go to our seats", Hermione said and Amala bit her upper lip and said quietly:  
  
"I have to be sorted too. should I have gone with the first-years?"  
  
"Now that you mention it, maybe, yeah." said Ron, not looking too concerned and walking towards the Gryffindor table. Then he suddenly stopped, realizing that nobody followed him.  
  
"Oh no!" she said looking a bit despaired.  
  
"Don't worry, it'll be o.k.", Hermione reassured her as she was looking embarrassed around the Hall.  
  
They stood there wondering which should be their next move. Ron was hiding his laughter hardly as Amala was obviously desperate. Maybe they should have just went and sat down at the Gryffindor table and see what happened next, standing in the middle of the Great Hall was not a good idea. Slytherins were laughing and everybody was staring at them.  
  
"Please, sit down!" said a voice behind Harry. "Make yourselves at home!"  
  
Harry turned on his heels and saw the speaker. She was a tall, brown-haired woman with brown eyes and a kind face, somewhere around 25 years.  
  
"Yes, well, we'd love to, but our friend here", said Ron pointing towards Amala and managing to hold back his laughter, "has just come to Hogwarts and she's not a first year, so she came in the carriages, but she needs to be sorted."  
  
The woman caught the idea and smiled.  
  
"Sit down at the Gryffindor table before they come, dear. I think you have some friends there, right?"  
  
"Yes, thanks."  
  
They all went and sat down at the table. Harry noted how weird it was that the woman knew their house. Soon after that, the doors of the Great Hall opened and Professor McGonagall came in with a group of frightened students. She carried a three legged stool with an ancient-looking wizard's hat on top of it. She put the stool with the hat in front of the teacher's table and then backed off a little. The first years looked weird at the hat, obviously wondering what they were supposed to do with the thing. Then the rip near the hat's brim opened and the hat started singing:  
  
Long, long time ago,  
  
When Hogwarts was so young  
  
The four founders had a fight  
  
And all went down so wrong.  
  
How could it happen?  
  
Could this be?  
  
They were good friends until before,  
  
The Slytherin and Gryffindor,  
  
Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw,  
  
But so different Salazar was,  
  
That this friendship faded.  
  
Now I come and warn you all  
  
Not to follow this example  
  
Because then for sure we'd fall  
  
From within we'd crumble.  
  
Now I'll divide you into four,  
  
Although I'd wish not to,  
  
But that is what I am here for  
  
And I'll do it as I normally do.  
  
If brave deeds for sure you'll do,  
  
Then you're a proud Gryffindor, I assure you  
  
If you have wit beyond the measure,  
  
Then in Ravenclaw you'll be treasured.  
  
If loyal and good you are above all,  
  
Then in Hufflepuff you will stand tall  
  
If for power you seek long  
  
Then in Slytherin you belong.  
  
But no matter where I put you,  
  
Stay united and make friends  
  
Not just in the house you belong to,  
  
But everywhere take you your steps  
  
And with this my song is finished  
  
And the Sorting now begins!  
  
The Great Hall broke into applause and Harry said:  
  
"Again? A new warning?"  
  
"I guess I'll still give warnings until all this is over." answered Hermione.  
  
The applause stopped and Professor McGonagall started reading the list.  
  
"Willow Abash"  
  
The girl went to the Sorting Hat and Professor McGonagall put it on her head. In a few seconds, it said loudly  
  
"Hufflepuff"  
  
"Anna Bruges"  
  
"Ravenclaw"  
  
"Michael Bowler"  
  
"Gryffindor"  
  
The Gryffindor table cheered as the small boy came to their table.  
  
"Jane Chase"  
  
"Gryffindor"  
  
Again, the Gryffindor table cheered.  
  
"Alexandra Drover"  
  
"Ravenclaw"  
  
"Mark Evans"  
  
"Gryffindor"  
  
"Hey, that's a kid from Little Whinging!" Harry yelled over the cheers.  
  
The Slytherin table cheered as the next student, Thomas Farrell went to their table. The Sorting went on and Harry noticed how many the newcomers seemed to be. After all the first years were Sorted, Professor McGonagall said:  
  
"And a new student, who is in the fifth year: Wright, Amala"  
  
The whole Great Hall looked at Amala who was bright-red as she got up and went towards the Hat. Professor McGonagall put it on her head and the Hat cried after a while of thinking:  
  
"Gryffindor"  
  
Amala went back to her seat and smiled widely. Meanwhile, Albus Dumbledore got up and the Hall went quiet.  
  
"Welcome, new-comers! And old-comers, welcome back! Thank you, and enjoy!"  
  
At that moment, the tables were filled with food and everybody jumped on the food, which was as great as always. The table was filled with all kinds of things, from fried chicken to boiled rice and a few deserts too: chocolate, cakes, fruit, ice cream. Amala was thrilled and acted like a hyperactive sugar-addicted person. Most people around were trying to hide their laughter, not that the girl would notice them.  
  
After getting less hungry, Amala asked Hermione:  
  
"So. Which one is Snape?"  
  
Hermione grinned.  
  
"The second one on Dumbledore's right."  
  
"He he! You're right, he is slimy! Got a pretty good picture of him before, though"  
  
The Gryffindors around grinned.  
  
After eating, Dumbledore got up again and the tables were cleared. Everybody was looking at him, waiting for the beginning-of-the-year speech. And they didn't have to wait long.  
  
"After eating this magnificent feast, I'd like to make the usual notices. The forest near the castle is out-of-bounds for students, as its name says. That means that you are NOT allowed in it. Every year I say this and every year I find out that students were there. Oh, well."  
  
As Dumbledore gave a small chuckle, Harry whispered towards Amala that he had been there every year, except the fourth.  
  
"Next, the caretaker, Argus Filch has kindly reminded me for what he tells me is the four-hundred-and-ninety-fifth time that magic on the corridors between classes is forbidden and so are a number of things. If you need any details, there is a huge list fastened to his door of forbidden things."  
  
He gave a look to the students, making it clear for everybody that he didn't actually believe that anybody would actually look at the list. And he was right, nobody ever looked at it.  
  
"Third. As it has become a tradition here, we have a new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Mrs. Iris Rose."  
  
The tall black-haired woman that told Amala to go to the Gryffindor table gave a small bow and the students applauded politely.  
  
"Fourth: both Mrs. Trelawney and Mr. Firenze will teach Divination, in turns. With Mrs. Trelawney you shall learn how to predict an individual's future and Mr. Firenze will teach you how you can tell the future of humanity."  
  
Hermione was smiling a little and Harry noticed that so did McGonagall.  
  
"Fifth: Some of the Educational Decrees were removed and now teachers will be allowed to talk about things different from their subject in their classes. All student organizations, societies, teams, groups and clubs are permitted. And nobody who will be found in the possession of the 'Quibbler' will be expelled."  
  
A few cheers were heard all around the Great Hall.  
  
"Sixth. Oh, they're many!" Dumbledore said and moved on. "Mrs. Dolores Umbridge has given up the post of High Inquisitor, which has also been canceled."  
  
The Great Hall exploded in applause. Even some teachers joined.  
  
"Hmmm, Mrs. Umbridge has disappeared somewhere in the mountains", he added. "Seemed to have a weird feeling that people didn't like her. I tried to contact her, but she was nowhere to be found."  
  
The Great Hall broke with laughter. Umbridge was deeply hated by everyone.  
  
"But I do believe that Mr. Fred and Mr. George Weasley almost found her. They said something about thanking her for bringing them big profits at their joke shop."  
  
The laughter got even more intense and Dumbledore looked at the walls, smiling slightly.  
  
"Seventh issue. Everybody who got any kind of life-long ban will have the great pleasure to hear that they are now cancelled."  
  
Harry grinned. That meant he was allowed to play in the Quiddich team again. In fact, he thought that this whole 'seventh issue' was about him, he couldn't remember anybody else with a life-long ban except for the Weasley twins, who weren't there any more, having fled last year.  
  
"Did I miss anything?" Dumbledore said thinking hardly. "Oh, right, the dates of the Quiddich tryouts will be posted in the house common rooms. Thank you and now, off to bed!"  
  
The students got up and Hermione and Ron called for the first years. This time, Amala went with them and Harry joined.  
  
"Watch out for staircases, they move" warned Hermione and a few first-years widened their eyes in surprise.  
  
"At my school", started Amala, "the castle was much smaller and less magical. Yes, food did appear on the table like here and staircases did change, but here everything seems alive."  
  
"Almost everything is", responded Harry, sending her into giggles.  
  
"Watch out for missing steps in the staircases." Hermione said jumping over one of them and the first years did the same.  
  
After moving up and down and confusing the first years a lot, they almost made it to the Gryffindor Tower. But when the two Prefects were thinking it had been a safe journey, from somewhere above, a voice said loudly:  
  
"Look, look, new ones. Oooh, I'm so going to have fun, wee-he!"  
  
A few unidentified flying objects nearly hit the first years and Hermione yelled:  
  
"Peeves! Stop it! Peeves!"  
  
"A-ha-ha! Ickle Prefect want to get big, bad Peeves? Fat chance!" he said throwing some things at her.  
  
Hermione ducked and said menacingly:  
  
"If you don't stop it, I'll get the Bloody Baron, I saw him around here somewhere!"  
  
"Ha! You didn't!" said Peeves, less sure of himself.  
  
"I did!" Hermione said, making him back off.  
  
"Now, why would missy Prefect call the Bloody Baron?"  
  
"Because you're awful, Peeves! Now stop it, or I'll go call him!"  
  
Peeves looked around and zoomed through a wall, mumbling something.  
  
As the first years recovered, Ron explained:  
  
"That was.uh. Peeves the Poltergeist. Don't let him get to you."  
  
"Well, that was interesting", said Amala. "Oh, well."  
  
Soon, they got to the Fat Lady's portrait.  
  
"This is the entrance to the common room and dormitories." Hermione started explaining. "The password is 'red flower'. You must remember it in order to get inside and you mustn't give it to anybody from the other houses, all right?"  
  
The kids nodded and Hermione turned towards the painting and said the password. The portrait moved itself and they all went through the hole. The common room was as cozy as ever and a fire was burning happily in the fireplace. Comfortable armchairs were around the place. Hermione led the first years to the dormitories and afterwards she came back to the common room and left with Amala towards their bedroom, leaving the boys alone.  
  
"She's a nice girl, although very, very hyperactive, isn't she?" said Ron.  
  
"Who, Amala?" said Harry sleepily walking up the stairs.  
  
"No, McGonagall. Of course Amala!"  
  
"I guess" Harry said and yawned.  
  
They entered their bedroom, where Neville, Dean and Seamus were already in their pajamas.  
  
"'lo, guys", said Seamus. "Harry, I never got the chance to, but I apologize for last year."  
  
"No problem, Seamus", answered Harry smiling. "Hey, Ron, where are the fifth year Prefects?!"  
  
Usually, the fifth year Prefects lead the first years to the dormitories and Harry noticed how odd it was that this year Ron and Hermione lead them. Ron looked surprised at him.  
  
"I didn't think you noticed. The Head Boy and Head Girl said that they should have a longer meeting tonight. So they couldn't lead them."  
  
"Aha" said Harry and collapsed on his bed.  
  
In about one minute, he was in bed, dreaming.  
  
()***&*&%%$%#%^&(*&*&%&$%^$*(())  
  
Yahoo!!! Here's my new chapter and we're back at school! That means I had to work a lot on a Sorting Hat song, but I won't have to write another one this year!!! God, I'm no poet. Oh, well, you can't have everything in life, can you? REVIEW and tell me what you think. ;-)  
  
Now, to my dear reviewers!!!  
  
To mad nadz: Thank you and. is that a web page?  
  
To patrick: Thanks! Yep, it's gonna be serious. And special. Especially about Jack Towers.  
  
To Meghan: Thank you! And I hope you enjoy this chapter!  
  
To Anthony: Thank you and here's the update.  
  
To Naomie: Thanks! Here's the next chappie!  
  
To bogdan-aq: I'm glad that you like my work. Si da, sunt din Romania. Chia unt din Romania.  
  
To HonqMinq: I'm glad you like it. And the Green Flame Torch is waiting for any person on the light side to come and get it. But, yeah, Harry will. Predictable, isn't it? The unpredictable part is how he'll use it.  
  
To the Red Dragons Order: I kept you last, because I have more to write to you *grins* Thank you for reviewing and I'm glad you liked my wolf scene!  
  
Now, let's move to serious business! You dare threat me with Red Dragons?! Well, do send them!  
  
*Gets up from the computer and goes to the window and looks outside.  
  
"Kya? Kya, where are you?"  
  
A beautiful Siberian Husky comes under the window.  
  
"Finally! Where were you? Listen, girl, go get our old friend, will you? Tell him that I need a small favor."  
  
The dog looks around and then climbs over the fence and gets to the other side and starts running down the street.  
  
Grins deviously and goes back to the computer* 


	6. The New Classes

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Draco Malfoy, Luna Lovegood, Peter Pettigrew, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, James Potter, Lily Potter, Albus Dumbledore, Minerva McGonagall, Neville Longbottom, Seamus Finnigan, Hedwig, Fred Weasley, George Weasley, Voldemort, Ginny Weasley, Lucius Malfoy, Dobby, Winky, Fawkes, Cedric Diggory, Cho Chang, Ollivander, Hogwarts, Diagon Alley or anyone or anything that appears in the Harry Potter books written by J. K. Rowling. However, the rest of the story is mine.  
  
Author's Stupid Note: I like Iris Rose and Jack Towers. Especially Jack. This has nothing to do with anything.  
  
Chapter 6: The new classes  
  
Harry was sitting on a throne in a dark room and some words came out of his mouth.  
  
"So, you tell me that Towers has been around again, right?! The fool, he will die."  
  
A small silhouette in front of him shivered.  
  
"Would you like me to take care of him, master?"  
  
"No, Wormtail, the man is too smart and powerful for you. I will do it myself. He reminds me of somebody I have encountered in my past. No, we have to attack him with something else."  
  
"What, master?"  
  
"I will tell you when the time will come."  
  
The dream melted away and Harry slept until the morning.  
  
The sixth year Gryffindor woke up that morning wondering what he should do about this dream. He'd probably tell Dumbledore as soon as possible. He got up and put his robes on. Ron wasn't in the bedroom.  
  
Harry was less concerned about this dream than the others he had had, but still he knew he should go to Dumbledore. He knew that Voldemort would probably take his time to plan something very well, so it wasn't urgent. And he instinctively knew that Voldemort would need some time to think of something, since he had no clue what to do.  
  
He went down, finding Hermione there with Ron.  
  
"I had a dream last night" said Harry, calmly. Hermione and Ron looked at him panicked.  
  
"What about?"  
  
"Voldemort. He said that he will take care of Towers."  
  
"Oh, Harry, you have to tell Dumbledore, Towers might be in danger!"  
  
"No, not really, Voldemort didn't have any good plan, he's only thinking of one now and it will take time."  
  
Hermione stared at him.  
  
"How do you know?"  
  
"I. I just know." Harry said. Right, how did he know?  
  
"You must take some more Occlumency lessons, mate. This is not good."  
  
"Ron's right" said Hermione. "Go now to Dumbledore and tell him."  
  
"He's probably at breakfast, isn't he?" asked Harry and the two nodded. "Then we'll go together."  
  
They went down to breakfast, almost running on the corridors. Amala was there, chatting with Ginny.  
  
"How dreadful! Did he?" they heard Amala say.  
  
"Yes, he did. I haven't spoken to him all morning."  
  
"I'd have done the same. Oh, hi, guys!" Amala said towards Harry, Hermione and Ron.  
  
"Hi!" they answered in unison and Ron and Hermione sat down next to the two girls and started eating. Amala was listening to Ginny's stories. Ron's younger sister started to like her. Hermione and Ron were looking at Harry with looks that said 'go NOW'. Harry nodded and went to the teachers' table. Amala was talking to Ginny now about happenings in classes, not noticing him. Good, the last thing he needed was the hyperactive girl to bug him with questions.  
  
"Um, Professor?" he said towards the old man.  
  
"Yes, Harry?" he asked, his eyes twinkling.  
  
Harry felt miserable. The whole Great Hall watched him closely, including Snape and Malfoy.  
  
"I. had a dream last night" he said and just then he realized how awful it sounded. Snape raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Yes?" asked Dumbledore and the twinkle in his eyes disappeared. "Come with me."  
  
Snape raised his eyebrow even higher. The Headmaster lead him to the room in the back of the teachers' table where he had been at the beginning of the fourth year, when he became a school champion.  
  
"Tell me about the dream, Harry" Dumbledore said.  
  
"I was Voldemort. and Wormtail had just told me that Towers was around again and Voldemort said he'll have to die. He didn't want to send Wormtail after him. He said that he'll take care of him himself. And he also said that Towers reminded him of somebody he once knew."  
  
Dumbledore looked serious at Harry, who knew that everything sounded awful.  
  
"You wouldn't happen to know what Voldemort has planned for him?"  
  
"I'm afraid not, Professor, but it will take him a long while to put his plan in practice."  
  
"How come you know this?"  
  
"I don't know. I just." Harry started wondering why everybody was asking him this.  
  
Dumbledore looked sad at Harry.  
  
"This is not good, Harry. It means that you and Voldemort had started sharing emotions. I'll think of something. Now, go back to breakfast. It shouldn't be a reason for you to miss the first day of school."  
  
Harry left the old man alone in the room with his thoughts. He didn't want to share anything with Voldemort! Especially emotions and thoughts!  
  
When Harry got back to the table, Ron, Hermione, Amala and Ginny were having a conversation about teachers. Harry sat down and took something to eat too, although he felt he couldn't eat. Instead, he turned his attention to what the others were talking about.  
  
"That's nothing", Amala said. "In my school, the History teacher fell asleep during his own lesson. But only a few students noticed, the others were asleep."  
  
Ginny gave a small chuckle.  
  
"An hour later, the Transfiguration teacher came and woke us all up, yelling something about lazy students and irresponsible teachers and asked who put the sleeping charm on us."  
  
Everybody nearby giggled.  
  
"And when we told him it was no charm, the Charms teacher, who happened to come around to see what happened, had to be carried to the hospital wing and wasn't back until the next day."  
  
"Why?" asked Dean.  
  
"Because he laughed like crazy. But that could have been also because of a Cheering charm 'accidentally' put on him by one of the students."  
  
Everybody nearby was laughing. It seemed that Charms teachers were predisposed to danger almost as much as History teachers were predisposed to being boring to death. Flitwick had been floated around the room by Neville, once. And Binns was the most boring History teacher, dead or alive.  
  
A small chuckle attracted their attention. Professor McGonagall was sitting behind Amala.  
  
"Here are your timetables" she said passing them some. "Poor teacher, your Charms professor. I myself had some trouble with some Slytherins once. They tried to vanish me."  
  
The table erupted into laughter and Professor McGonagall moved towards the teachers' table.  
  
"And teachers at Muggle schools complain!" Said Harry, still trying to get awful thoughts out of his head. "At Muggle schools, you trick the teachers; at Magic schools you jinx them."  
  
Some giggled and everybody started looking on their timetables.  
  
"Oh, no!" said Harry bitterly. Hermione had convinced him to go to every class he could go to and he had quite a lot of classes. More then he had expected, anyway.  
  
"Double Potions, what a way to start the week!" said Ron. "With the Slytherins!"  
  
"As usual", said Hermione. "And double Charms. That's o.k."  
  
"Herbology and Transfiguration." Added Harry.  
  
"It's gonna be great!" Amala said smiling widely. "I'm good at Potions and I like Charms and Transfiguration. I'll manage."  
  
"Yeah, well, try to stay this optimistic after meeting Snape, too." said Ron.  
  
They finished breakfast and went towards the dungeons. Draco Malfoy was there without Crabbe and Goyle. Shortly after they entered the classroom, Snape himself entered, looking even more nasty than usual.  
  
"You're probably wondering why I accepted people who only got 'Exceeded Expectations' at the O.W.L.s Potions. It is because this year the truth was not showed by the grade. I must say that some idiots got 'Outstanding', while some very intelligent people got 'Exceeded Expectations'."  
  
Harry grinned. Draco got an 'E', it was obvious.  
  
"And besides", the Potions Master added, "only four people got 'Outstanding'. Now start making your potions, the ingredients and method are on the blackboard, the ingredients in the store cupboard."  
  
As he said these, waving his wand, writing appeared on the blackboard. Most people in the room gulped. That was a difficult potion and they would probably need two weeks to finish it.  
  
Suddenly, the door to the dungeon opened and Neville came in.  
  
"Sorry I'm late, Professor, I."  
  
"I don't care what happened, Longbottom, you shouldn't be late from your first day!" Snape snapped. "Twenty points from Gryffindor!"  
  
As everybody gaped at the scene, Neville took his cauldron and started preparing his ingredients. Ron and Harry shared a surprised look. Neville, at Potions?  
  
Everybody started working quietly and, out of what Harry could see, Amala was doing as good as Hermione. He was following the instructions as good as possible and at the end of the two classes when the potions were supposed to be dark brown, his was almost as dark brown as Hermione's and Amala's. And that was something, because Snape was breathing down his neck all the time. When they got out, they started talking.  
  
"We'll have to work on them a long time. It's going to be difficult." Said Hermione.  
  
"I wish I never took Potions" mumbled Ron.  
  
"We have to, if we wanted to be Aurors." Said Harry. "Hey, Neville, how come you're here?!"  
  
"I.I got an 'E' at my O.W.L.s. I worked hard. Now I'm thinking of becoming an Auror, like my parents."  
  
Harry smiled slightly and noticed that Amala stood quietly next to Hermione, thing which hadn't happened yet. In fact, she seemed down, not her usual hyperactive self. Not that he would have known her for a long time, but still.  
  
"What's the matter?" asked Ron, who also noticed. "Snape got to you? And you were optimistic at breakfast!" Hermione was looking at Ron, distracted.  
  
"I'm o.k.", Amala answered, looking sad.  
  
Before anybody else could ask her anything, they made it to Charms and took their seats. Professor Flitwick entered the classroom and said joyfully:  
  
"Welcome back, welcome back, class! I see we have a new student amongst us". Amala smiled and blushed. "Nice to have you!". The girl mumbled a 'thanks' and Professor Flitwick continued: "Today we learn about the Illusion Charm. With this charm, you'll make an illusion of an object or a person very life-like. This way, you can confuse people around you." He said, winking. "The incantation is 'Dublo Aspectus'. Everybody repeat, please!"  
  
"Dublo Aspectus" chanted the class.  
  
"Good, good!" the Professor said jollily. "Now, you make this wand movement", he said moving his wand and the class followed. "Good, good! Now, I want you to point your wands at the rocks you have in front of you and combine the move with the words."  
  
The class started trying to make the spell. By the end of the class, only Hermione and, surprisingly, Neville, had managed to make a somewhat good illusion of their rocks, but not even those didn't look life-like, they looked rather ghostly.  
  
"Oh, well", sighed Professor Flitwick, "You'll make it next time. Five points for Gryffindor for Ms. Granger's illusion. It is, indeed, a ridiculously difficult spell. Especially until you get the hang of it."  
  
The class went out, everybody talking about the failures. However, when Ron pointed out the fact that not even Hermione, who was the best of the best, managed to make a perfect illusion of the rock, everybody cheered up and Hermione smiled widely.  
  
They all went towards the Great Hall for lunch and then went out for some air. Amala stuck to them, asking questions about Transfiguration and Defence and everything that came to her mind. When Harry thought he couldn't stand any more, they had to go to Herbology. Thank God!!!  
  
They had Herbology with the Hufflepuffs and everybody was starting to gather around. Neville came to them and grinned.  
  
"I got an 'Outstanding' O.W.L. here", he said proudly.  
  
Neville's best subject was Herbology and he had a great passion for plants. He had a plant called mimbulus mimbletonia that Harry remembered too well. It covered him in Stinksap only last year.  
  
The Herbology lesson was acceptable and they survived the man-eating plant easily. After getting out of class, they moved towards the castle again for Transfiguration and managed to shut Amala up.  
  
Professor McGonagall was already inside and immediately after they got in, she gave them a small speech and added at the end:  
  
"As all of you know, everybody here has got at least 'Outstanding' in their Transfiguration O.W.L., so that means you should be good at my subject. That is why this year we move on to human Transfiguration. Please get in groups of two."  
  
Harry got with Ron and Hermione with Amala. After Professor McGonagall gave them the instructions, they started trying to transfigure each other. The poor Professor had her hands full. Accident after accident, they made it to the end of the class. Hermione managed to transfigure Amala's hand into a chimp's, like they were supposed to -also getting twenty points for Gryffindor-, but the rest of the class was nowhere near that level. As the bell rang, Professor McGonagall said with a tired voice:  
  
"It's the same every year. You have done well, good-bye."  
  
They moved out of the classroom, talking, as usual, about how bad they did in class. They heard a sigh and a sound of someone crashing on a chair from the classroom.  
  
"At least something happened." Said Ron.  
  
"Yeah, but I really don't like having hair all over my body.", responded Harry grinning.  
  
"Why do we have to practice this on ourselves, Hermione?" asked Ron curiously.  
  
"Who do you want to practice on, McGonagall?" she answered. "But I think she'll be back to everybody on himself."  
  
"What do you mean?" asked Harry.  
  
"She used to tell students to point their wands at themselves. I guess she tried another thing now."  
  
They moved towards the Gryffindor tower and threw themselves on some armchairs. Overall, the day had been alright. Kind of. If you didn't count the Snape classes and the failures in Charms and Transfiguration and the fact that Amala bugged them all the time. Which meant that 90% of the day had to not be counted.  
  
After a good dinner and a good night sleep, Harry was expecting to feel good on Tuesday morning. But that night, Sirius came in and out of his dreams, sometimes accompanied by his parents. A shadow was always moving around, seeming to look over something. When he woke up, he only remembered the shadow starting to look like a man and giving its hand to Sirius, who grabbed it.  
  
Overall, he was pretty depressed in the morning when he woke up, still blaming himself for Sirius's death.  
  
But after breakfast, things cheered up, as they had Defence Against the Dark Arts.  
  
They entered the classroom and sat down quietly. Unfortunately, this class was with the Slytherins, so Harry didn't feel too well at the beginning. In a very short while, Professor Rose came in, smiling happily.  
  
"Well, I hope you're all prepared for this Defence class. 'Cause we're gonna have some work to do. I'd like to make some revision with you. Check out how you've been doing so far."  
  
Her smile was contagious and half the class started to feel excited for no reason. Something weird surrounded her like nobody else around. He looked at her closely and it struck him: Love. Love was her power and Harry was sure that she could even melt Snape's heart if she wanted to. There was something weird there.  
  
"Who's the best in this class?" she asked looking around, her voice sounding pleasant as water running downstream through a forest.  
  
"Harry Potter" answered a few Gryffindors, while the Slytherins said "Draco Malfoy"  
  
"Well, Mr. Potter, Mr. Malfoy, come here" she said ant the two looked at her surprised and got up and went up to her. "Take out your wands, please." They stared at each other and at her, but followed the instructions. "Since there are two of you, I'm going to take you one by one. Who's first?" Harry and Draco looked at her for a second and then both said, pointing at the other:  
  
"Him!"  
  
"So, it's up to me!" she said grinning. "Well, Slytherins usually have great skills at Dark Arts -I wonder why?- so Mr. Malfoy, come here."  
  
Draco gulped. Was she going to duel him?  
  
"Mr. Malfoy, I'll do something and you have to react as quick as possible. Got it?"  
  
She was going to duel them! Quickly, Professor Rose took out her wand and Draco yelled as fast as he could "Impedimenta!", but to everybody's surprise, the Professor yelled "Protego!". Draco, who didn't expect such a move got hit by his own spell that jumped off the Professor's shield. The Gryffindors laughed and the Slytherins mumbled something that could not be understood.  
  
"Expalliarmus!" she said and Draco's wand flew away. "As you can see, Mr. Malfoy thought that I would be attacking. Well, I might have. You see, it is important to know your opponent. Mr. Malfoy here is a Slytherin and will rather attack than protect himself. A Ravenclaw would probably protect itself, because they'd know it's safer. Thank you Mr. Malfoy" she added and released the boy. "Now, Mr. Potter. I'm going to do something. You should react. But be careful!"  
  
Harry took his wand and waited. Should he use a defensive charm, or a jinx? But before he could decide, Professor Rose opened a box and got out of his way. A Dementor came out of it and Harry stood with his mouth opened just for a moment. Something happy, something happy. "Bow to death, Harry". He yelled: "Expecto patronum!" He looked around and saw Professor Rose surprised."It might even be painless". The Dementor was closing in. "Expecto Patronum!" This time he succeeded, the stag charged at the Dementor making it go back. Wait, something was wrong, Professor Rose was still surprised and the Dementor tripped. "Riddiculus!!!" he said imagining the huge cloaked figure falling and turning to dust.  
  
To his surprise, it worked. Almost. The Dementor disappeared, but in its place appeared a huge spider. Ron's worst nightmare. His stag disappeared.  
  
"Riddiculus!" he heard somebody say and saw Professor Rose going towards the spider. She somehow got it in the box from where she took it before they could see what it was and said to Harry, trying to smile:  
  
"Well, that was good! Unusual, but good. How did you know it wasn't a Dementor?"  
  
"I.I saw you surprised. And it tripped"  
  
Professor Rose gave a huge smile and said:  
  
"And you're not in Ravenclaw? Very good, Harry, very good! Thank you!"  
  
Harry went to his seat. The whole thing hadn't taken more than thirty seconds, but it seemed like forever.  
  
Somewhere behind, he heard Draco saying "His worst fear are Dementors! How pathetic!", but he didn't care.  
  
"Quiet, class!" Professor Rose said. "Now, as you can see, Mr. Potter has no problem with Dementors or Boggarts. By the way, ten points to Gryffindor. As you could see, I chose different ways of dealing with the two 'best in class'. You are good for your level, considering the fact that your first year was lost because the Professor was stuttering and nobody understood a thing, the second because. oh, well. You could have learned a lot about hair-dews and smiles from Mr. Lockhart. He never thought you the only magic thing he knew, the memory charm, did he? No, I guess he didn't. The third year was good, out of what I caught. Professor Lupin showed you a lot of creatures. Too bad because of the werewolf-thingy, though. People judge things by their reputation, even if it's wrong. Mr. Moody was, out of what I understood, not quite himself, but he did teach you about curses. Very useful, indeed. Professor Umbridge. you totally wasted the year. I mean, no, wait! You learned a lot about how to trick Professors and make the school a huge chaos. Not that it would have anything to do with what we're supposed to teach you at Defence. Useful stuff, though. But this year it's going to be different."  
  
Everybody in the class exchanged looks.  
  
"And I do want to stay here for more than a year. And I will, I hope, although nobody seems to last here more than that." She grinned. "This lesson you won't need any wands, it's going to be an introduction lesson." She took a serious face, lifted her head and gave a small cough "Hem, hem. I hope we can all be friends", she said in Umbridge-imitation and students didn't know if they should laugh or not. "But not as friendly as you were to the ex-teacher. I will try to teach you everything I know" she said dropping the Umbridge-imitation. "And I'll start with the beginning. This Defence class is even more important than it used to be, with the recent events. In order to defend yourself from everything that is dark, you need to know something about darkness itself and you should get to know yourselves."  
  
The students looked at each others. This was weird. Learn about darkness itself? And they knew themselves! They didn't have to study to know that!  
  
"Darkness itself is represented by fear, cruelty, the I-don't-give-a-damn- about-the-others idea, love for what hurts the others. But above all in the dangers for the common person is fear. Fear got to an extreme state can get you in pain like the Cruciatus Curse. It can make you lose your head, it can make you give up when you still have a chance, it can make you obey somebody who you fear."  
  
The class was watching her amazed. Fear could do that? She talked like that looking a bit afraid herself.  
  
"I'm talking about giving yourself in to fear. If fear rules you, you will be very hurt sooner or later."  
  
Yes, it seemed logical, but it also seemed somehow not real.  
  
"That is darkness's greatest power. To make people fear and give in to their fear. Some Death Eaters are what they are because of their fear of He- Who-Will-Not-Be-Named."  
  
Harry thought of Pettigrew.  
  
"I will tell you more about this later. But now I will tell you why it is good to know yourself before you go to face darkness."  
  
The class was looking at her curiously and she sighed.  
  
"You can be extremely white, if you understand what I mean. And then you will always know that whatever happens, you'll be o.k. You know you'll manage with anything that will happen and you'll be able to accept the events and try to make things good for yourself. I myself like this way to treat things better than the other ways. An extremely powerful person that chose this way won't even be attacked. The dark senses that it will have help from everywhere in such a case and retreats. If you think it helps, imagine a Patronus-like person. Pure happiness and no fear. And having the same effect on Dementors. But such people are very rare, it is hard to ever see one."  
  
Harry looked at her amazed. A human Patronus? Not even attacked by the dark? That could be of great help. But they were extremely rare. What if he could be one? Then he'd have a huge advantage over Voldemort.  
  
"But not everybody is the same." Continued Professor Rose. "And it is wrong to choose a way that is not yours, just because it sounds good. No, there are different ways. One of them is exactly the opposite: frighten your enemies, convince them that they should serve you, to fear you beyond measure. Such a person is not necessarily on the dark side, but it seems so and may give you the chills if you meet it when it acts like that. But it is not evil."  
  
Harry widened his eyes. So you could be dark, and yet not evil? How?  
  
"I know such a person, myself", she continued. "A great guy, but I wouldn't want to be his enemy. To choose such a way, you need to have great power, or you'll never impress your enemy."  
  
Harry looked at Draco, who was grinning. The blond Slytherin was definitely considering for this choice.  
  
"And then there is the common group. Where you just fight it and you are neither, neither. And that is what almost everybody here is. You will need to know how to not lose your heads in dangerous situations and how to stand tall and accept what is to come, like the extreme white one and survive."  
  
Yep, this was their category.  
  
"This way means you are ready to go forward as most wizards do. And for this path I shall train you."  
  
She continued telling them about people who lost their heads in dangerous situations and were defeated and about people who kept their heads till the end, even if no hope was there and won. She somehow made it sound great and when they left the class, they were all happy. Professor Rose had a way of cheering everyone up that they could really use more often.  
  
Harry wondered if he'd manage to do anything next class, at Charms.  
  
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/  
  
Author's note: Oh, I'd like to say that I was trying to be funny when I wrote the disclaimer and the author's note at the beginning. If I didn't succeed, then it turned out just as I expected. (  
  
Thank you's:  
  
To: Naomie: Thank you for reviewing! You're a great fan! And I'm glad you like it. :::looks around::: Do you know what? My favorite part is starting just now, with the first DADA lesson. Hope you enjoy it.  
  
To: the Red Dragons Order: :::grins deviously::: Yes, old friend! Kya, my dog, should be back here with him any second now! Mwahahahahahaha! Ahahaha! Ahahaha!  
  
:::suddenly realizes that she is acting like an idiot and coughs::: Oops, sorry about that, got carried away. Yeah. well. You can't be always sane, can you? Don't answer that!  
  
Really?! Your name is Jane? Well, then, I think that Jane Chase should get a role in this fiction. I'll think of something. I hope you enjoyed your movie!  
  
***The door bell rings and she goes to open the door. A weird man around his forties enters.  
  
"Well, hello, M., need my help? What is it? A spider on the ceiling?"  
  
"Actually, no, but there is a huge one in the bathroom, now that you mention it."  
  
He glares murderously.  
  
"Actually, that's not why I called you." She says, deciding it's not a good idea to joke. "Look at this! Got any ideas?"  
  
The man looks at the screen of the computer.  
  
". What, you haven't kept writing?"  
  
"Yes, I did, but I don't like threats. and that's why I called you."  
  
"You're loosing it! Because, I used to threat you every time we meet, remember?"  
  
"Yeah, yeah, I meant I called you to teach them a lesson."  
  
He raises an eyebrow and then looks again at the screen.  
  
"Oh, well.." he raises an arm with an 'I got an idea" move and straightens his position and, in perfect super-hero imitation, he says: "This is a job for."  
  
She raises an eyebrow.  
  
"Someone else! See ya, I'm going." He says, rushing towards the door, shaking his head.  
  
"Akvar, wait! What would you like in return?" she asks, smiling.  
  
He turns on his heels, smiles and says:  
  
"Now you're speaking my language!"  
  
"Well???"  
  
"Free hand. You're not to criticize my work. Not unless someone gets hurt. Jack's horse, Navasil, should be at my disposal. I think I'll need it; and an unlimited period of time to do this; no bugging from you; and you should tell me what you heard about the Lord of Light."  
  
"Well, the last one's simple. He's Harry Potter. Yes, one of the Red Dragons. And the last are approved."  
  
"Wait, I also want a house in Jamaica, a Mercedes, a holiday in Majorca."  
  
"Don't push it, demon."  
  
"M., M., I was just kidding. Bye!"  
  
He goes out, she waits for him to Apparate and then she rushes to the window.  
  
"Kya!!! I meant Mayhowl, the wolf, Kya, our old friend, not Akvar the demon!!!"  
  
The dog looks surprised.  
  
"Jesus! I ended up with a goddamned powerful demon! I wanted a few pranks played on the Red Dragons! Oh, boy."  
  
She goes to the computer and sits down.  
  
"Damn! Next time I'll tell that dog the name of the old friend."*** 


	7. Birds and Secrets

Disclaimer and dedication on first page. I'm starting to like this story.  
  
Chapter 7: Birds and secrets  
  
On Wednesday, they had Care of Magical Creatures. Hagrid looked extremely cheerful for a reason or another.  
  
"T'day we'll learn 'bout Phoenixes. Professor Dumbledore lent us Fawkes for this lesson", he said and called the fiery bird. Fawkes flew above their heads and landed on Hagrid's shoulder, giving a chirp. Harry looked at it and smiled. The song of the Phoenix was for him the song of hope and Fawkes himself helped Harry once when he was in great need.  
  
"Wow!" Hermione said, looking at him.  
  
"Pretty, ain't it?" asked Hagrid, cheerfully. "Phoenixes are very special 'irds, when they die, they get r'born from the'r own ashes."  
  
Harry remembered the first time Fawkes did that in front of him. He had already been accused of petrifying a few students when Fawkes burst in flames and he had felt terrified. It wasn't a good thing for the Headmaster's bird to burst into flames in front of you when you are alone with it. The boy smiled.  
  
"Now, who can tell me 'bout Phoenixes?"  
  
Harry's and Hermione's hands flew up in the air.  
  
"Yes, 'arry?"  
  
"They are extremely faithful and they can carry great weights and their tears have healing powers."  
  
"Tha's true, 'arry! Ten points ter Gryffindor!"  
  
The rest of the lesson, Hagrid taught them a lot of things about Phoenixes, like how they die, bursting into flames. Somewhere, in the back of the class, Draco was wondering loudly, without Hagrid hearing him, though, if he could kill the bird, then.  
  
That weekend, Harry, Ron and Hermione went to Hagrid's hut for tea, taking Amala with them. They didn't really want to do that, but she insisted a lot and they had no choice. Well, yeah, they liked her, but they couldn't just accept her into their lives just like that. And she kept following them everywhere they went, like a shadow. It was getting annoying, to tell the truth. They were a trio until then and the girl was trying to push herself into their lives and hearts.  
  
Hagrid greeted them cheerfully and seemed to like Amala -probably since she seemed to like monsters. Unfortunately, they forgot to tell her about the Rock Cakes, so she nearly lost a tooth in one.  
  
That night, the trio was doing some homework for Potions.  
  
"I can't believe the old git!" said Ron madly. "An essay so long and it's only the first week!"  
  
"Oh, well." said Hermione. "That's just Snape, you should know him by now."  
  
Harry was just staring at the parchment. They had to write a thirty-inched essay about the potion they were just making, the 'King's Draught', a potion even more difficult then the one they were making in their class. The potion was supposed to make a person look and be more powerful than it usually was, but just for a short while, two hours. It took two months to make and Harry was hoping that they'd never have to make it during Potions.  
  
"I hate the guy.", continued Ron.  
  
"You're not the only one", commented Harry. "But with me, the feeling is shared."  
  
"Yeah", Hermione said.  
  
"I so wish Sirius was here", Harry said after a while. It was the first time he said it after he died. It felt weird and Ron was looking sympathetically at him while Hermione seemed to be sorry for him.  
  
"He's gone now, Harry; and there's nothing to do to bring him back." The girl said.  
  
"I know.", he said quietly. "He used to joke a lot and he made me feel better all the time. Remember when we spent those days helping him clean up his house?"  
  
"Yeah," said Ron smiling sadly. "Kreacher said once something about the 'Noble and Most Ancient House of Black' and he said that it was getting blacker every day because it was filthy."  
  
Ron smiled a bit.  
  
"You were at Sirius Black's House?!" they heard a voice from some place and when they looked to the person who was talking, they saw it was Amala.  
  
"Are you spying on us?" Ron asked madly.  
  
The girl got pale and mumbled something about wanting to check some homework and she overheard.  
  
"Yeah, right!" said Ron in the same mad tone. "What do you want? You're following us around all the time and now. now you spy on us!"  
  
"I. I."  
  
"Have you no shame?" he continued. "I never spied on anybody who was supposed to be my friend!"  
  
The girl looked as if she was hit by a boulder. She shouldn't have gotten discovered.  
  
Hermione and Harry looked at her angrily. How dared she spy on them? The girl backed of a little and when Ron added something about a filthy little spy, she just burst in tears and ran towards the dormitory.  
  
"Good work, Ron." The two others said. The rest of the common room was staring at them, but when they glared back at them, they went back to their own business, wondering what had happened.  
  
"Do you think she'll tell anyone?" asked Hermione.  
  
"So what if she does?" said Harry. "He's dead, isn't he? They can't hunt him anymore."  
  
"I suppose." the girl answered.  
  
Angelina appeared nearby.  
  
"Where were you two?" she asked. "God, we need to practice at Quiddich, the first game is in November! We'll have trainings every Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday."  
  
"Oh, great", mumbled Harry. "Hey, Angelina!" he yelled after her as she was leaving. "With whom do we have our first match?"  
  
"Hufflepuffs"  
  
They went back to their homework and studied for one more hour, after that going to bed. Harry changed his clothes and fell in the bed. Tomorrow was Sunday and he could oversleep.  
  
The next morning he, Ron and Hermione went to breakfast without Amala, for the first time since they were back at Hogwarts. In fact, they didn't see her all morning and Harry knew that she was probably staying away from them all day. She appeared at lunch, disappearing again afterwards, without saying anything.  
  
But in the afternoon, she appeared right by their table when they were studying in the library.  
  
"Go away!" said Hermione, not even looking at her.  
  
But Amala didn't move. Instead, she said in a low whisper:  
  
"I. I'm sorry."  
  
Hermione glared at her and Harry said in a sarcastic tone:  
  
"Yeah, well, we're sorry too."  
  
"Sorry that we ever let you stay near us." Continued Ron  
  
Her eyes were filled with tears and she said slowly:  
  
"I really am sorry." And then she continued, talking faster and faster "You see, I came here hoping that I would be your friend and I guess I tried to force myself in your group and I never meant to annoy you, but I have nearly no friends, I didn't have whom to stick to, everybody's in a group and I'm not and that night when you were talking about Sirius, I just couldn't hold myself from listening, I knew that you always do great things, I wanted to know about them and I guess that I shouldn't have listened and oh, I'm so sorry and. I promise I won't tell! I swear I won't! And I'll never spy on you ever again and I'll never hang around you if you don't want me too, but please, please, forgive me!"  
  
She said all that with tears in her eyes and quickly, so that they couldn't interrupt her.  
  
"You swear you won't tell anybody?"  
  
"I do, I do!"  
  
The three looked at each other. Well, she did seem to tell the truth and did seem pretty lonely and had nearly no friends. Well, yeah, she was friends with Ginny, but the girl stood most of the time with fourth years. And she had already proved to be very curious. So, they decided to give her another chance. Mainly because if she would have burst into tears, she would have attracted unwanted attention from Snape who was walking around, looking for something.  
  
"We're just doing our homework at Charms, Want to stay with us?" Harry said.  
  
"Oh, thank you, thank you!" she said and hugged him and took a chair.  
  
She was much less bugging now than before and they were starting to like her more. And they forgave her -kind of-. One day, they actually told her Sirius's story, mainly because she knew about them being friends with the guy. The girl looked amazed at the story and when they showed her pictures of the Animagus, she really seemed to be sorry for him.  
  
Amala heard the stories about Sirius and saw pictures with him and actually started feeling sorry for both him and Harry. The teenager seemed quite sad when he thought about his godfather and Amala started feeling that she could do something about him. She decided to Apparate to the Ministry on Saturday night and see what was going on there. She would also take her Invisibility Cape with her and try to keep the noise down.  
  
On Saturday, she went outside Hogwarts and Apparated in the Ministry of Magic, at the entrance. She moved towards the Department of Mysteries, following Harry's explanations which she had pulled out of him from curiosity. Some people were around there, but she avoided them quietly and went forward.  
  
When she made it to the circular room, the rooms started spinning and when they stopped, she looked around. There was no way of telling which door was to the Death Room. She looked around and made her choice. She opened it and she saw that it didn't look at all like the Death Room Harry described, so she closed the door back and everything started spinning.  
  
'Great!' she thought to herself. 'How am I ever going to find the damned room?'  
  
She tried another one and it didn't seem like it either. After everything stopped spinning, she opened another door. And this time it seemed right. She entered the room and looked around. There was the Arch, there was the veil. Her heat stopped for a second. There were indeed whispers that could be heard from behind the thing. And she started moving slowly towards the entrance to the world of the dead. Closer and closer. Almost there, almost there.  
  
But in that moment she stopped. No, she had to not go through the damned thing, she'd be killed! But. Should she?!  
  
Almost at dawn, when she returned to Hogwarts, she swore to herself she'd go back. But now, she had to go to school. It was Sunday morning and she didn't feel the least bit tired. She hurried across the lawn and into the castle, still covered by the Invisibility Cloak. She entered the castle and hurried off to the common room and sat down on an armchair. Just two weeks of Hogwarts and she was braking the law by Apparating and doing something extremely dangerous. She went up to the dormitory and took a book that Harry had leant her, called "Great Mysteries of the Wizards". Well, she couldn't sleep, so why not do something useful with her time?  
  
She opened the book and started reading random pages.  
  
"Who came up with the idea of the first wand? Wizard archeologists have been trying to find out the answer of this question for ages. They say that first wizards have done magic only by the level of making objects move around until the idea of a wand came up.  
  
They say that somewhere in Egypt wizards used to have scepters instead of wands, made out of magic wood and later with magic origin. But who came with the idea of the first scepter or wand is unknown."  
  
"A mystery that has occurred to the wizard community is the one of the Philosopher Stone. It is said that the stone can turn any metal to gold and with it it's possible to make the Elixir of Life, which would make a man live for as long as he took it, centuries and millenniums. The only known maker of the stone is Nicholas Flamel."  
  
"Out of date", she whispered to herself. Suddenly, an entrance in the book attracted her attention.  
  
"One of the greatest mysteries know to the wizards is the one of the world beyond. As the magical world is for the Muggle world, so is this world beyond to the magical one.  
  
It is said that magic is gone to an enormous rate in that world and that world has people living in it that are immortals. Some say that everything has a soul and everything that seems to be dead in this world is definitely alive in the other. Some say that Death and Life themselves belong to that world beyond ours and so do Angels and the souls of Fire, Water, Air, Earth, the souls of stars and planets and everything that seems dead in the Muggle and magical world.  
  
But this is only a theory and hardly do we know if there is any world beyond ours."  
  
"Weird", the girl thought and moved on to a new entry.  
  
"Sometimes a mystery is weirder than just a hidden fact. One of the mysteries that wizards are still trying to figure out is the character known as Jack Strois, a weird character that has the first name English and the second French.  
  
The man is known to appear at odd times and is also known as 'Time Traveler', because he seems to appear in every era.  
  
Nobody ever found out his origins, not even if he is human or not.  
  
The question is if he belongs to the future, where great wizards have decided to send him to save us from disasters."  
  
"Interesting", she thought and went back to the dormitory to put the book back. It was weird to read such things and she felt as if she were talking to Loony Lovegood again.  
  
It was close to breakfast and Amala stood on an armchair. Soon, Harry, Ron and Hermione would be up. Should she tell them that she went to the Department of Mysteries last night? No. Definitely not. They would tell her never to do that again, probably. And she broke the law.  
  
She daydreamed until the rest woke up.  
  
Harry woke up that morning quite early for a weekend day. Ron was already getting dressed. They went down together and found Amala sitting there in an armchair.  
  
"Morning!" she said cheerfully.  
  
"'lo!" they replied. "Is Hermione up yet?"  
  
"No, I don't think so" she answered.  
  
They waited for her to appear and when she did, they all went down to breakfast. The smell of the food was rising from the food on the table and they sat down, taking a bit out of everything: toast, marmalade, butter, eggs. And Ron noticed that Amala was looking towards the teachers' table.  
  
"Saw somebody interesting?" he asked.  
  
"Yes", she replied dreamily.  
  
The three looked at her.  
  
"Who?"  
  
"What?" she asked surprised. "I didn't hear what you said."  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Who what?"  
  
"I just asked you if you saw somebody interesting and you said yes. Who?"  
  
Amala looked at him in shock.  
  
"I didn't. I thought I only thought that somebody asked me that question, I." she said and stopped.  
  
The trio was looking quite curious at her. At the teachers' table stood only Dumbledore, Rose, Snape and McGonagall.  
  
"Who were you looking at?" asked Harry curiously.  
  
The girl looked around and saw that they were alone in that part of the table. Duh! It was only seven thirty!  
  
"Snape"  
  
"What?!" asked Ron. "The git?"  
  
"Yes, the git." She answered with a sigh. "I. I. I. Was looking at him because he seems to um. be particularly menacing today. Don't you think?"  
  
The trio looked at her. What?  
  
"I mean, look at him, he's so. um."  
  
"Like in the other days?!" asked Ron. "What's going on?"  
  
Amala got as red as a tomato and said:  
  
"Don't you think he looks very menacing?"  
  
"No!" said Harry and Hermione started laughing.  
  
"You've been looking after him for a while now. Do you like him?"  
  
Amala got even redder than before and the two boys stared at her.  
  
"Well, I might have a crush on him."  
  
The two gaped. Oh, boy! She was in love with Snape! The slime ball Snape! The greasy, disgusting, rock-hearted Snape!  
  
"You. you're crazy!" said Ron with eyes as big as the plates.  
  
"Yes, I am. Do you have anything against it?" she said with a sigh.  
  
"You mean you. like the guy? You mean you." started Harry, but she cut him off.  
  
"I don't agree with everything he does and I don't really think he's the kindest or most beautiful person, but I have a crush on him." She said, trying to sound a bit more sure of herself than she really was.  
  
"You're in love with the rock-harted git!" said Ron quite loud, and Amala went "shh!"  
  
"I really don't want this to be known in the entire school, Ron!"  
  
"And are you going to. do something about it?" asked Hermione.  
  
"Maybe. But I don't know what or if it's worth it."  
  
"It's not," said Harry. "I think that he'd kill you if you said anything that includes him and the word 'love' in the same sentence."  
  
"Probably." Agreed Amala. "Oh, boy!"  
  
"Just get over him." Said Hermione, trying to find the right answer to the problem.  
  
"It's not that easy", she answered. "I'm used to fighting for anything I want and I guess I'll fight for Snape."  
  
"I just lost my appetite", mumbled Ron.  
  
**--//--**//  
  
To:  
  
Naomie: Thank's for always reviewing, it means a lot to me. It really does.  
  
Bogdan-aq: Merci ca ai citit. De unde esti?  
  
The Red Dragons Order: You're going to have your sweet revenge, eh? Can't wait for it!!! You update soon too. Oh, and the rest of my little fic about the unfortunate review is going to be posted on King Akvar's account. You're welcomed for Jane Chase. 


	8. Darkness all Around Us

Disclaimer and dedication in the first chapter.  
  
Author's Note: Me and King Akvar have a nice story written on his account. It all started with the Red Dragons Order saying something she shouldn't have. Swear to God that it is good. -at least in our opinion (including Red Dragons Order's)-  
  
Chapter 8: Darkness all around us  
  
Harry was looking at a dark room.  
  
*-Nagini-* he hissed. *-Where are you, Nagini?-*  
  
*-Here, massster-* answered the snake.  
  
*-Where isss your sssson, Nagini?-*  
  
"He hassssn't come yet, masssster-*  
  
Harry scratched his chin, thinking. Suddenly, another snake hissed:  
  
*-I have come, massster, mother.-*  
  
*-What can you tell me?-*  
  
*-Towerssss is in London, masssster. He will kill tonight, massster-*  
  
*-Good, good-*  
  
*-He will kill with poisssson, massster-*  
  
*-Very good. Leave now.-*  
  
*-Yessss massster-*  
  
The snake left.  
  
*-What do you think, Nagini?-*  
  
*-Towersss is a bad man. He will go to Azssskaban-*  
  
*-He will, won't he?-*  
  
The dream faded and Harry woke up, having a weird feeling and with his scar hurting badly. When he realized where he was, he jumped out of bed and ran outside Gryffindor Tower and down the halls.  
  
He ran quickly past Peeves, who yelled something bad at him, and past Nearly Headless Nick who asked him what he was doing in his pijama outside his tower.  
  
He also ran past Mrs. Norris who immediately went after Filch. Harry ran even faster and made it to the entrance of Dumbledore's office.  
  
"Um, sherbet lemon?"  
  
The statue wouldn't move.  
  
"Cherry pie? Chocolate? Cocoa? Candy? Sugar Quills? Cockroach Cluster? Hurry up or Filch will catch me! Cake? Smarties? Donuts?"  
  
The statue jumped out of his way.  
  
"Thanks"  
  
He climbed the stairs and got to the door and knocked. Of course, no answer! Just his luck. But this was important. Harry carefully pushed the door and stuck his head inside.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore?"  
  
No answer.  
  
"Professor?"  
  
Fawkes looked at him curiously.  
  
"I need to talk to Dumbledore, Fawkes."  
  
The phoenix sang a few notes and a sleepy voice sounded from behind a door:  
  
"Coming, coming!"  
  
Dumbledore appeared in a few seconds, in some night robes.  
  
"Harry, what brings you here?"  
  
"Professor, I had a dream."  
  
The Headmaster's face got very serious. It was just two weeks away from the other.  
  
"Yes, Harry?"  
  
"I. I was Voldemort and a snake told me that Towers will kill tonight, that he will poison someone. And then Nagini said -do you know Nagini, Professor?" Dumbledore nodded and Harry continued: "Nagini said that Towers is an evil man and he will go to Azkaban."  
  
"Harry, I want you to do something" said Dumbledore, looking concerned. "When Voldemort appears to you, try to concentrate as much as you can on your heart. He can't stand that."  
  
Harry nodded.  
  
"I will, Professor" he answered.  
  
"Now go to bed, Harry"  
  
Dumbledore sounded tired and worried and Harry complied. He would tell Ron and Hermione tomorrow.  
  
////****  
  
That morning, after his best friends got over the state of total panic, they went to breakfast. The atmosphere was wrong. Everybody seemed to be shocked or scared or amazed. Harry went straight to Ginny and she handed him the 'Daily Prophet'.  
  
Death in London  
  
Well known witch Monica Kane has been killed yesterday in her apartment in London. Jack Towers has been seen last night around her apartment, but the Aurors said it probably was He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.  
  
But the Dark Mark has not been seen around. Auror Kingsley says the author was probably a Death Eater. He also says it could have been a Muggle, since the witch was poisoned and was known to have problems with Muggle Mafia.  
  
"You were right, mate" said Ron. "Towers did poison someone."  
  
"But do you think it was Towers?" asked Hermione. "It might be a set-up."  
  
"I don't know" answered Harry truthfully.  
  
Amala appeared around, wearing a weird expression.  
  
"Did you hear about the murder?" she asked them and they nodded. "Kane" she whispered. "Where have I heard of her from?"  
  
"You heard of her?" asked Ron curiously.  
  
"I think so" she answered. "Yes. She was saying something about her having a quarrel with the Towers guy. But that was a long time ago"  
  
Hermione, Ron and Harry exchanged looks. This was not good. Either Towers was guilty and then he would be on the dark side and they'd lose a great wizard or he was good and it would be a setup. And a damned good one, too.  
  
They set out for classes, unfortunately having double Potions. Well, unfortunately for Harry, Ron and Hermione, but fortunately for Amala. She didn't seem to have a care in the world and she had a dreamy look in her eyes, but she was still brewing the potion correctly -how annoying when some people can do that easily, while others can't even do one thing right. If only they could have talked in that class! Maybe she could come up with a god explanation for the murder. But no, did they trust her enough? Well, she did keep the secret about Sirius. Yes, they should tell her.  
  
Next class, they had Double Charms, so why not tell her then? It was the perfect opportunity, since the whole class was such a chaos that nobody could possibly hear them.  
  
They sat at their seats and started trying to make illusions of their rocks. They had advanced a lot since their first class and now they could make somewhat life-like illusions of objects. Flitwick told them that their illusions would eventually even start to feel real, and, if they were illusions of live animals or even humans, they could be controlled by their makers.  
  
"Imagine the fun that would be" said Ron, enthusiastically. "We could make illusions of Malfoy and make him go to class and loose points for Slytherins and."  
  
"Ron", Hermione interfered, "to make an illusion that life like is extremely difficult and there are ways to tell if that is an illusion or not, if the caster is not powerful enough. Really, I don't think that Malfoy would be around when you will manage to do that, and even if he will, you'd have to be able to see your illusion, since you can't see through its eyes and."  
  
"O.K., Hermione, I got it!" Ron replied slightly annoyed. "I was just day dreaming!"  
  
"Guys, do you think we should tell Amala about my dream now?" Harry asked before it would develop in a full-scale war.  
  
"Yeah, sure mate" answered Ron and made a sign for her to join them. She easily got away from her seat and came to them without Flitwick or anybody else noticing. Anyway, it was hard for anybody to notice her with all the chaos that was around: Seamus had blown up his rock, Neville was trying to put the fire out, Dean was creating ghost-like illusions of everything around, proving not to have a really good aim and Flitwick. Flitwick was running around the room and trying to get everybody to calm down.  
  
"Amala, we've got something to tell you" said Ron.  
  
"I had a dream last night." started Harry to tell her, but then realized that she had no clue of what was up with him dreaming. "Me and Voldemort have a connection because of the curse that didn't work" Harry explained. "And sometimes we can see in each other. I dream of what he's doing, for example"  
  
"Aha" she said and waited for him to continue.  
  
"And last night I had one of those dreams. Voldemort was speaking to two snakes. One of them said that Towers will poison someone and the other said that Towers is a bad man and will end up in Azkaban."  
  
"Whoa. And this really happened?" she asked.  
  
"I think so. What do you make of it?"  
  
"Well, there are two choices: one of them is that Towers is guilty and a rival or something of Voldemort and the other is that he's innocent and it's a set-up."  
  
"Just our thoughts" answered Hermione.  
  
"But can you really see inside his head, Harry?" she asked excitedly. "And do these dreams really happen? Oh, you're a true Seer."  
  
"Please, don't" Harry mumbled.  
  
"Oh, and it must be wonderful for you to know his plans and."  
  
"It's not. I hate every second of it, every minute of it. And I think he can see inside my head, too."  
  
"But, surely, it must be great that."  
  
"There's nothing great about it, trust me. Last year he tricked me with this and that's. that's how Sirius died... Because of me. Because I never wondered if that dream was true or not."  
  
"That's not true, mate" Ron said comfortingly. "It's not because of you."  
  
"Flitwick is coming! Quick!" said Hermione and started creating illusions of rocks everywhere to pretend that they had been working and not talking.  
  
"Good, Mrs. Granger, good!" said Flitwick seeing her older illusions, not noticing the new ones were pretty bad. "Five points to Gryffindor!"  
  
**/*/*/*/*  
  
The next days passed by quickly, with Amala looking after Snape on every corridor and no more news on Kane's murder or on Jack Towers. Friday night reached them happily chatting about Draco's 'accident' on a corridor. Peeves had dropped a few water balloons on his head, making him run away and take the stairs for getting as quickly as possible to class. However, he had forgotten about a trap step and he tumbled down the stairs when the step broke under him. He landed, of course, in the middle of a Gryffindor group.  
  
"Did you see the look on his face?" asked Ron, chuckling. "It was pain when he fell and terror when he saw he had landed at our feet."  
  
"Oh, yes. I think Mrs. Pomfrey will keep him in the Hospital Wing for a while" said Hermione, chuckling. "Too bad we didn't have a camera, though. It would have been great to always have his pained face as a thing to cheer up on."  
  
"I think we had a very bad influence on you, Hermione" noticed Ron.  
  
"Yeah, you probably did." She answered. "Well, I'm full. Shall we go to our common room?"  
  
"Sure" they answered, although Ron seemed to still want to eat.  
  
They went up the stairs, past Mrs. Norris who meowed menacingly and past Nearly Headless Nick who told them that Peeves was chased around the castle by Filch.  
  
"Bad thing Malfoy fell down the stairs. They should throw Peeves out of the castle, or at least try to hold him from doing such things" the ghost added, not seeming too concerned though.  
  
They went passed him and got to the Fat Lady's portrait.  
  
"Red flower"  
  
The portrait opened and they passed through it, getting to the common room.  
  
"I'm off too bed." Said Amala and left with Hermione.  
  
"Hey, Harry?"  
  
"Yes, Ron?"  
  
"Could I please copy your homework for Defence? I haven't done it."  
  
"Sure, it's on the table."  
  
Ron got himself a piece of parchment and started copying. Harry yawned and went upstairs. He got into his pijamas and collapsed on the bed. How on Earth did Ron have enough energy to copy his homework? He sure didn't.  
  
/*/*/*/*/*/*  
  
A black pair of eyes watched him in the dark and Harry remembered, like from a dream, Dumbledore's advice to concentrate on his heart.  
  
"Don't be afraid, young one" a voice said. "I have not brought you here to hurt you."  
  
"Why did you bring me here?" asked Harry. He realized that he was himself and that was good.  
  
"To tell you. To warn you. Your life is difficult, young Potter, like it has always been in your family. But remember, great deeds bring great rewards."  
  
"Who are you?" Harry asked, not feeling too comfortable.  
  
"Ahhh. My name shall not be mentioned now."  
  
Harry noticed that the voice sounded human, but also deep and good, reminding him of the tales with good kings and queens and great deeds. It also seemed ancient and powerful.  
  
"My name is not important. But what will happen is. Great deeds will come that you do not expect and things you dare not even dream off will come true. And I don't necessarily mean that they are good or bad, young Potter. They just are. Remember always not to judge a book by its cover and not to oppose your destiny. Remember not to ask destiny to change itself for you and do not think that what has worked once always will. Truth and reality are always changing and a way that might lead you to victory today might lead you to death tomorrow."  
  
"What do you mean?" Harry asked. It was confusing.  
  
"You will realize the meaning of my words when you will be in the situations that I'm talking about. And remember. remember that friendship, loyalty, courage, trust and love can save you from the worst situations. I leave you now, young one, but one day we shall meet again."  
  
Harry felt that dream melting away and he could swear he heard the pleasant, deep voice say goodbye. He opened his eyes in the darkness of his chamber, feeling totally refreshed. The man with that voice was his friend and helper. He knew it. But should he tell Dumbledore or his friends about it?  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*--/-*//*-  
  
Author's Note: Me and King Akvar have a nice story written on his account. It all started with the Red Dragons Order saying something she shouldn't have. Swear to God that it is good. -at least in our opinion (including Red Dragons Order's)- I know I also said this at the beginning, but this way maybe somebody will actually read the note.  
  
Oh, and do review if you read. I love reviews, they make me jump up and down on my seat.  
  
Thanks: To Naomie, my faithful reader. Do read my and King Akvar's story, you might like it. *smiles widely*. Thank you.  
  
To the Red Dragons Order: Thank you for reviewing. *smiling even wider*. Did I ever mention that I got to this site because of you?  
  
To Bogdan-ag: Ma bucur ca iti place. And you'll have to give me a cookie. *winks*.  
  
To Megsalette: You think Snape and Amala are disgusting. But I find Snape oddly attractive. Oddly attractive. To find out what I can actually find at the guy, read the Red Dragons Order HP/SS SLASH. And maybe you'll be even more disgusted, but anyways.  
  
I'm glad you think my writing is good and I hope you'll read this chapter too. 


	9. The Great Surprises

Disclaimer and dedication on first page.  
  
Author's Note: Hey, all you who've read my 'Behind the veil' story! This is where it comes in, as I promised it would. *smiles deviously* And some things you will find in this chapter will be of great importance afterwards. Yeees. I'm starting to like this story more and more and I promise you'll see somebody soon.  
  
Great Scott!!! I can't believe it!!! I was about to post the chapter when I replied for the reviews and I forgot to save it!!! So, that means that my last-minute thanks were. nowhere!!! Well, here they are now and sorry for the mistake!!!  
  
Chapter 9: The great surprises  
  
It was the beginning of October and Amala made walking to the Department of Mysteries a weekly habit and Dumbledore knew it. He had found out of this thing in the third week of school. Well, he could have done something about it, but there was something in his heart that told him to stay back. So, he just followed her when she went there, to prevent her from doing stupid things. But all she did was stare at the veil.  
  
Today, he was getting ready to go, when McGonagall came and told him about a kid who was having problems at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Oh, well, he guessed he had to save him.  
  
He went to the forest where he found a totally traumatized second year. He smiled to the kid and asked him what happened. It turned out that he went to find out what the 'fuss' was about with the forest and had encountered a few centaurs who weren't too kind. He sent Minerva with the kid to the Hospital Wing and he made himself invisible and Apparated in the Ministry. He moved quickly towards the Department of Mysteries. He opened the door to the place and stepped inside. The rooms started spinning and he chose the door he knew was towards the Death chamber. Great, he was late! A feeling that something bad was about to happen surrounded him. He opened the door, hoping nothing had went wrong.  
  
But exactly as he entered, Amala said loudly:  
  
"For Sirius" and stepped towards the veil.  
  
"Amala, don't!" he cried, hoping to stop her, but she didn't hear him and stepped through the thing.  
  
The Headmaster stood dead in his tracks. Oh, God! He felt a bit desperate, but he came back to his senses and looked sad towards the veil, towards the death that stood there and felt so close. Death. Death had taken another, another who would have spent a happy life if he had made it in time.  
  
Death surrounded him and he shivered, for the first time in years. Oh, he knew the feeling just too well, he had faced Death before. But now it seemed so close to him. Maybe because he was older. He suddenly felt that Death itself knew he was there and whispered to the veil, not knowing why he did it:  
  
"This is the second of Harry's friends that you take. Why? Why Amala?"  
  
He felt sad all over and turned towards the door and opened it. There was nothing more to be done.  
  
A pair of black eyes watched him get out from the darkness.  
  
^(*(&%*^&*^  
  
The next morning, Harry, Ron, Ginny and Hermione went towards the Great Hall.  
  
"Where's Amala?" Ron asked.  
  
"I don't know, she must have gone to breakfast earlier. You know she's a morning person" Hermione replied.  
  
It was ten thirty and almost everybody was up. They went towards the table and sat down and started eating.  
  
The people around them chatted happily and they followed the example. Ginny was just wondering about a spell in Transfiguration and Hermione was explaining to her everything. Ron was laughing in his plate.  
  
As they ate, they saw a very sad Dumbledore going towards the teachers' table.  
  
"What's up with him?" asked Ron looking at the Headmaster. He seemed thirty years older.  
  
"Dunno" Harry answered.  
  
As Dumbledore reached his seat, they saw him take out his wand and whisper some words.  
  
"What's he doing?" asked Harry, but got no answer.  
  
Dumbledore stopped making the magic and said, his voice clearly sounding through the castle:  
  
"All students and teachers please come to the Great Hall."  
  
It was an order, not a request and everybody showed up and took their seats. What happened? Dumbledore didn't just call them there for nothing, did he?  
  
The Headmaster looked sad at everyone and started saying:  
  
"Thank you for coming." His voice was low and sad, yet everyone heard it. "I have some very bad news today, I am afraid."  
  
Everybody looked at him silently. Had Voldemort conquered the world? Had somebody died?  
  
"Dear students, fellow Professors, with great sadness I announce you that another student has followed Cedric Diggory on dark paths."  
  
Everybody looked around and Ginny cried:  
  
"Amala! Oh, no!"  
  
Dumbledore looked down and everybody felt their hearts sink. At least, everybody from Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. The Slytherins weren't so sad about the whole thing as the others. But Amala had been one of the nicer characters in the school and a good student. And the three houses were sad for her. And they were afraid of whatever else would happen. Another dead student. Was that again Voldemort's hand?  
  
"Yes, I am afraid so.", said Dumbledore very quietly and then continued: "Amala Wright has died trying to save someone from death. Let us now raise our glasses for Amala Wright!"  
  
But as the glasses were raised, the doors of the Great Hall burst open.  
  
"Well, Professor Dumbledore, I must say I am truly honored, but I'm not dead. At least not yet!" said a smiling Amala.  
  
Everybody in the school was staring now at either her or Dumbledore, who nearly lost his glass. 'But the girl went through the veil!' he said in his mind.  
  
Many were laughing right now. Mostly, the Slytherins. Harry even heard Malfoy say:  
  
"The old man is loosing it. The Dark Lord will soon take over the school!"  
  
A few from other houses were laughing. Some were thinking that Dumbledore made a joke and a very sadistic one, too, and were laughing politely and some others thought that the girl managed to trick him.  
  
Amala herself went and sat down by Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny.  
  
"What was that all about?! We all thought you were dead! What on Earth happened?" asked Ron, his eyes wide opened.  
  
"I'll tell you later, not here", she whispered. "How long have I been gone?"  
  
"Not much", said Hermione. "Since last night."  
  
Something was definitely weird here! What had happened to the girl? And why on Earth didn't she know how long she had been missing?  
  
"That little? It seemed like days"  
  
"Where were you?" asked Harry.  
  
"I'll tell you later. This is morning, right?"  
  
"Yes!" the trio answered, looking weird at her.  
  
Suddenly the post came and a huge, brown owl came down to Harry.  
  
"I wonder who this could be from?" he asked himself, taking the letter from the owl who flew away quickly.  
  
He opened the envelope and his eyes widened and his jaw dropped.  
  
"What is it, Harry?" asked Ron, trying to take the letter, but Harry didn't let him.  
  
But Harry was reading and re-reading the name on the bottom of the letter. How could it be true? It couldn't! No way! But. but.  
  
"Harry, the whole table is watching", whispered Amala in his ear.  
  
It was true. Most eyes were on Harry, who came up with a story in a moment.  
  
"It's from my aunt and uncle. They say that my cousin has gone bald and it's all my fault!"  
  
The Gryffindors started to laugh and Hermione and Ron came closer to Harry.  
  
"Really?" whispered Ron.  
  
"No", said Harry slowly. "Tell you later!" he said still in a state of shock, while Amala was smiling mysteriously.  
  
The four finished their meal as soon as humanly possible and quickly found an empty classroom.  
  
"SIRIUS IS ALIVE!" said Harry. "Look, he sent me a letter!"  
  
Hermione and Ron stared at him in surprise and Harry showed them the letter.  
  
Dear Harry,  
  
I can't believe it either! I'm alive! After I fell through the veil, I spent a long time there, but yesterday a girl, Amala came and took me out. I think she learns in Hogwarts. I've been sent to a safe place far away. Ask Amala for details.  
  
Oh, Harry, it's wonderful! I'm alive again! I missed you so! Please, please, write back soon!  
  
Snuffles  
  
"Whoa!" said Ron. "Harry, it's incredible! Whoa, Amala! I never knew you could do such a thing! What a surprise"  
  
"Huge!" cried Hermione. "Amala, how on Earth did you rescue him?!"  
  
"What?!" Ron said outraged. "Sirius is O.K. and you're worried with technical details?!"  
  
"I'm sorry, Ron!" she said sarcastically. "I didn't know that asking Amala to tell us what happened is a 'technical detail'".  
  
"Oh, yeah, right!" said Ron. "Tell us everything!"  
  
"Well, I snuck up to the Department of Mysteries."  
  
"How did you get there?" asked Harry in surprise.  
  
"I Apparated.", she answered and Hermione put her hand over her mouth.  
  
"But that's illegal."  
  
"Yeah, well. Anyway, a guy started talking to me telepathically and he told me that I had a chance to make it out if I went through the veil. I went inside, found Sirius and tried to go out with him. But a woman who was Death's Guardian, wouldn't let me through. After a while, Death herself came and let us out. It was weird, she was joking with us. Out there stood a man that Death called Multa Nomina and I realized he was the guy who talked to me telepathically. After that, Death disappeared and he took us to Transylvania, near my home with a portkey and he let Sirius there, saying he'd help him out with the Ministry problem and then he took me back here. Oh, and by the way, his first name is Jack. It's weird, he felt ancient and yet young. Gods, I don't know who he is, he felt like a king or something. He's the one who told me to go in when I did."  
  
The three stood there looking as if they were struck by a lightning.  
  
"You. you conquered Death!" said Ron, awestruck.  
  
"No, I didn't", the girl whispered. "If she hadn't wanted to let us go, we'd both be dead.  
  
She stood there and then added:  
  
"But I don't think it was just me who saved Sirius. I had a lot of help from that Jack guy, I think."  
  
"Multa Nomina." Hermione whispered. "Many names. Death. Sirius alive. Oh, Gods."  
  
Harry was awestruck. Sirius, Sirius was alive! Oh, Lords! And. Oh, my God, he was alive! It was all alright! It was o.k. Was it a dream?  
  
"You. Sirius. Alive. Bring"  
  
"Yes, me Sirius alive bring" she answered. "It feels like a dream. Is it one?"  
  
"It feels real" answered Hermione. "Gods, Harry, Sirius is back!!! I never heard of anybody come back t life before! Well, not like this! Oh, Gods, Amala, you could have died! My God!"  
  
"I know." the other girl answered. "I know. It's weird."  
  
"It's impossible!" cried Ron. "Definitely impossible!"  
  
"I know, but still. It felt weird. I don't know. Like a dream. Death, Sirius." Amala answered and noticed that they were all still in shock. Actually, she just started to realize what happened. O.K., she should de- shock them.  
  
After managing to get them out of shock, Amala went back to the common room, where before she could say any weird story of where she had been, she was called by McGonagall to Dumbledore, where she had to repeat the story. The Headmaster himself looked quite shocked when he found out the story and told her not to tell anybody else about this, except for the ones who knew the Animagus was dead. That meant Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna and Neville. Everybody else was supposed to know that she had been in the Forbidden Forest and a giant spider attacked her and that he, Dumbledore, thought the thing killed her, but she had only fainted. The girl accepted the story gladly and added the part about being saved by a Dryad. At least, now she had a good story about how she got to the Great Hall when se was supposed to be dead.  
  
For the next few days, she told everybody the story and the people who were supposed to tell the truth, the truth. Dumbledore himself shared the secret with the Order members.  
  
Shock was the best definition of everybody who found out the news. Nobody knew what to think, many people had tried to conquer death, but none had managed. And yet, a girl appeared and saved somebody from death.  
  
Amala herself started to feel the legendary Gryffindor courage build up inside her and a part of her changing, leaving her wiser.  
  
However, that state disappeared way quicker than anyone had expected. In one week, it was gone. They all started to get used to the idea of Sirius living and Amala saving him. Sirius was sending Harry letters with the owl that seemed to be as quick as light. Amala had the feeling it was again connected to the Multa Nomina guy.  
  
After the shock-state disappeared, Amala, decided to go on with her life. Her friends noticed that she had gotten a certain powerful look in her eyes, and although as cheery as before, she was somehow more serious, more understanding. On that particular Sunday morning, she reached a decision about her life.  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione were writing a letter to Sirius in the common room. Amala got down the stairs from the girls dormitories, yawning. She was going to share that decision with them.  
  
"Guys, I'm crazy!" she said, yawning again.  
  
"Why?" asked Harry, although he could think of a million reasons why.  
  
"Because I still have a crush on Snape."  
  
"Well, yeah, you're crazy", said Ron, "but not more than you were a few weeks ago."  
  
Amala glared at him.  
  
"This time, I'll do something about it."  
  
"The guy will kill you!" said Ron. "You are crazy!"  
  
She smiled a little, while they were staring at her.  
  
"So, what are you going to do about it?" Asked Hermione.  
  
Amala looked her in the eyes.  
  
"You'll see."  
  
"Tell us, so we'll know what you were thinking about when he kills you!" said Ron.  
  
"Tell us before we kill you", added Harry.  
  
"No, no" she said in a sing-song voice. "This is a teaser. Tomorrow, you'll see!"  
  
"Tell us!" said Hermione pleadingly.  
  
"Tell you what?" asked Ginny curiously.  
  
Amala looked at Ron's sister and said:  
  
"Who I have a crush on."  
  
The other four looked at her, in surprise, Harry, Ron and Hermione that she didn't tell Ginny and Ginny that Amala had a crush on somebody and didn't tell her. Not even that she had a crush.  
  
"Oh, well", said Ginny after a few seconds, not noticing the other three's faces, "I'm going to breakfast."  
  
After she left, Ron asked her:  
  
"Why didn't you tell her?"  
  
"Because I hadn't told her that I had a crush on Snape, either." She answered. "And I'm not sure this'll work. Whish me luck tomorrow."  
  
"But what are you going to do?" asked Hermione looking straight into her eyes.  
  
"You'll see", she said smiling mysteriously. Oh, yes, this was going to be good.  
  
/*-*/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Oh, well, it's all done. Hope you liked it. Everything has a logic here -at least everything I'm thinking of has a logic. Want to know what happened to Amala? Read 'Behind the Veil'.  
  
Thanks: to Naomie: For always reading. Thanks!  
  
To the Red Dragons Order: Yes, you reviewed the chapter, just that I was a bit. um. inattentive and I forgot to save the blasted chapter before I posted it! *groans*. Thank you for reviewing!!! 


	10. Gryffindor Soul or Suicidal Wish

Author's Note: Sorry about the mix up with the last chapter. Well, we're baaaack. And Amala. Oh, but read the chapter!!!  
  
Chapter 10: Gryffindor soul or suicidal wish  
  
They bugged her all through breakfast and still she hadn't given up. And now, now she was doing that homework for Transfiguration. Great! The three were dying of curiosity. At lunch, they bugged her again, but she seemed to want to tell them less the more they bugged her. By dinner, they had given up and now they were heading towards the Quiddich pitch.  
  
Ginny, Harry and Ron entered the pitch and mounted their brooms. Ginny had replaced Alicia, who had finished school, in the team, doing quite a good job.  
  
Ron was really much better than at his first games last year. The Quaffle was hardly getting past him.  
  
Harry zoomed around to catch the Snitch -which was also zooming around- and letting the air blow through his hair. He didn't care what he'd do after school, he'd always have a broom to fly around on!  
  
There was the Snitch! He caught it easily, then let it go, waited a little and then zoomed after it again.  
  
It lasted until it was dark and Angelina was convinced to stop the training. Harry caught the Snitch and returned it to the team captain.  
  
After getting themselves dressed, Harry, Ron and Ginny set of for the Gryffindor tower, especially the Gryffindor beds.  
  
The next morning, Harry woke up with greater and greater curiosity. Amala said she'd be doing something today about Snape and him and Ron still hadn't figured out what.  
  
He went to the Great Hall with Ron, finding Hermione and Amala there. They ate a little and then all of them went towards the dungeons. Amala looked quite determined, but also pale.  
  
"You know, you don't have to do anything if you don't want to" pointed Harry out.  
  
"I know, but I want to. And I think I'm just going to prove the fact that the Sorting Hat isn't getting old."  
  
"What are you going to do?" asked Ron, hoping to take her by surprise.  
  
"Wait and see", she replied.  
  
"You know, Slytherins say that we aren't brave, but idiots who go head forward into all kinds of things. I really whish you don't prove that to them." Said Harry.  
  
"Don't worry!' she said, trying to smile. Oh, yes, she was probably crazy!  
  
They made it to the dungeons and Amala entered, making courage to herself. They went back to their potions, Amala's looking the same as Hermione's. Snape himself was there and he waived his wand and the next instructions appeared on the blackboard.  
  
Harry waited and waited and waited for something to happen. But nothing, Amala was brewing her potion, looking on the blackboard from time to time and putting different ingredients inside. Just like she had done so many times before.  
  
After an hour when nothing happened, Harry relaxed. Maybe she gave up. But, just as if somebody had read his mind, Amala's potion started boiling like mad and looking awful. Harry looked at her cauldron and saw her looking with fear in her eyes at the growing potion inside, boiling and changing colors. The sound wasn't good either.  
  
"Everybody out and forget your things!" he heard Snape yell and saw the huge surprise in his eyes and -for the first time-, a bit of fear, too.  
  
Of course, Harry obeyed, with the rest of the class and so did Amala. Everybody was running towards the door and the Potion Master himself got out as quick as he could, but behind the students, locking the door.  
  
For a few moments, nothing seemed to happen. Then they heard a very loud noise and then an explosion and the door shacked while the Potion Master held it tight. And he didn't wait to get inside to start yelling like mad.  
  
"CAN YOU READ, MRS. WRIGHT? YOU COULD HAVE DESTOYED THE WHOLE SCHOOL, FOR GOD'S SAKE! WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?! And we have to start with the potions all over again! Fool of a girl! How could you do it? CAN YOU READ?!"  
  
And he went on and on and on, seeming to not want to stop. Harry wondered how much the man could scream. Finally, after about ten minutes of yelling, he added:  
  
"Fifty points from Gryffindor and two, no-make that three, weeks of detention!"  
  
He opened the door to the dungeons and entered fast with the students behind him. When Harry looked around, he almost fell down in surprise. All over the walls and the ceiling there was a weird, blue substance. The cauldrons were pushed against the walls and none of them seemed to have any potion left inside. Everything was a huge mess and Snape was walking around muttering 'Scourgify' and 'Reparo'.  
  
"We'll have to start these potions all over again, because of Mrs. Wrong here. Now go to your next class!"  
  
Harry, Ron, Hermione and Amala went out of the classroom.  
  
"Good thing we just started those, isn't it?" asked Hermione trying to be optimistic.  
  
"I didn't know that it'll be this horrible", said Amala, looking a bit concerned.  
  
"You meant to do this?!" asked Harry, confused.  
  
"Well, yeah." she answered. "At my school some guy did it once and said it was bad, but."  
  
"You're crazy!" cried Ron. "What for?!"  
  
"Now I have detention, don't I? And I'll work hard and recover the fifty points and I'll make it up to the rest of the class somehow."  
  
"You wanted to get in detention?!" asked Harry surprised. "Why would anybody want that?"  
  
"Have any better ideas, Harry?" she asked looking at him a bit worried. "But did you hear him yell? I thought he was going to kill me! Oh, Gods, I can't believe that happened."  
  
They went to Charms, leaving Amala with her own problems. Ron was in a state of shock.  
  
Charms was alright, their skills had considerably improved and they had moved on to other spells, like the sound charm they had been doing for a few classes.  
  
"Now, students!" Flitwick said. "I see you all learned the basis, so try to concentrate on the theme 'Happy birthday'. Go ahead and remember the words: 'Veni cantus'!"  
  
It was a fun charm, they soon discovered. If you didn't concentrate hard enough, the song came out different and everything was a total racket. Finally, Flitwick stopped them.  
  
"Oh, well, one at a time" he said and sighed.  
  
They all started doing the charm. Hermione's came out perfect -of course!-, Ron's however, wasn't too good.  
  
"Happy stupid charm to you! Happy stupid song to you!"  
  
Well, at least the melody was the same, although the lyrics were very much mixed up.  
  
"I see that you don't like the charm or song, Mr. Weasley, but please try to concentrate!" sad Flitwick, chuckling.  
  
Harry's turn was next. O.K., Happy Birthday to you, Happy birthday to you.  
  
"Happy birthday to you!" came the sound as he said the words of the charm, although it was a bit off-key.  
  
"Congratulations, Harry!" said Amala.  
  
It was her turn next and she tried to concentrate. When she did the charm, the melody was good, but the lyrics.  
  
"I blew up the classroom, I blew up the classroom" was sang with her own voice.  
  
Half of the class was on the floor with laughter.  
  
"Oh, dear!" said Professor Flitwick. "Yes, I heard about the incident. But you really mustn't be stressed, Mrs. Wright, it happens."  
  
Neville tried it next. His song came out perfectly. In fact, Harry noticed that he was doing much better than before at his classes.  
  
Suddenly, the door opened and Professor Rose's head came in.  
  
"Ah, the sound charm." she said and smiled nicely. "I remember this one. Mr. Flitwick, could I please borrow Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, Mrs. Granger and Mrs. Wright?"  
  
"Of course" the jolly Flitwick answered.  
  
Professor Rose smiled as the four came to her. She lifted her wand and whispered 'Veni Cantus'. A beautiful melody came in the room and Amala recognized Enya's 'Adiemus'.  
  
"Good charm, Mrs. Rose!" he said happily.  
  
"Thank you" she said and bowed, getting out with the four. "I want you three Unbreakables not to go around sending letters to a certain serious person. The owl that has been carrying them is being monitored and he might be caught."  
  
"How do you know about this serious person?" asked Hermione.  
  
"I have my ways. And besides, I'm in the Order too." She said and winked.  
  
The four goggled their eyes at her.  
  
"You are?!"  
  
"Yes. And as for you, Mrs. Wright, I'd like to ask you what the hell you were thinking when you blew up Snape's classroom."  
  
"Um. Nothing?"  
  
"Well, that's obvious. Watch out with him and try not to act like a complete idiot. And don't go around doing heroic deeds. That goes for all of you."  
  
Amala looked in Professor Rose's eyes. Why did she have the 'look behind my words' tone? And why did she look as if she said: 'Do heroic deeds, dare!'?  
  
"But usually when they do heroic deeds, they save the world" Amala noted.  
  
"Oh, well, then try not to get yourselves in great trouble, O.K.? And don't think about visiting that person, alright? If you did, by the Green Flame Torch, he couldn't be saved!"  
  
"Yes."  
  
Professor Rose let them go and they headed for the classroom. What was that? And what did the Green Flame Torch have to do with anything????  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
That evening, the girl walked towards the dungeons. She opened the door to Snape's class and she saw that everything was nearly cleaned up. Nearly.  
  
"As you can see, idiotic girl, I took care about most of the mess. The rest needs to be cleaned by hand, no magic. Get to it. "  
  
The voice belonged to Snape, who handed her a rag. The girl sighed and started cleaning up. It was not as bad as one might have expected it. Snape was reading a book behind his desk, stopping just from time to time to shoot bad comments. After a few hours, Snape let her go. 'Tomorrow. I swear', she whispered to herself, going towards the Gryffindor tower. Why, why did she not have enough courage? Oh, Gods. Tomorrow, tomorrow she'd do it!  
  
"How was detention?" asked Harry, looking at her.  
  
"Not too bad. I had to clean up what he didn't. No magic."  
  
"Yeah, it could be worse. After the way he was screaming in the morning, I thought he'd torture you."  
  
The next day, Amala wasn't too attentive at those damned classes. Who cared about anything the teachers said? She had important things to do! But would she dare? Would she have enough courage?  
  
/*-/*-/*-  
  
Again the evening found her walking again towards the dungeons with a feeling that she had skipped a few stairs in her stomach. As the other day, he put her clean up. Jar by jar, she moved towards the end of the detention. She wouldn't dare. God, where was all her courage?! She had dared go through the veil and now. now she didn't even dare say something to Snape.  
  
She cleaned the shelf from under a jar, taking a peek at Snape who was reading something at his desk again. How she wished she'd dare go to him and say something, do something! But he'd just blast her through the door.  
  
Her mind ran wild. What if he liked her as well? Oh, she knew he could be sooo great, if he wanted to! She bit her lip, imagining herself and Severus as a couple. There was the last jar on the shelf. Why couldn't she stay there a little more? Just watching him. And what would she do when she ran out of jars and shelves? What would he put her to do? Would she still stay in his classroom. Oh, yes, yes, yes, please, let her stay in his classroom!  
  
As she was cleaning that last jar on the floor, Severus got up from his chair and moved quietly towards her. Amala was too busy wondering if she would have the courage to do anything to notice.  
  
"Enough for today", he said, making her jump up a bit and drop her rag. She picked it up and got up quickly, turning towards the Potion Master. She was at about half a meter from him and looked him in the eyes. Those deep, black eyes. Wonderful eyes. Without thinking too much and feeling very Gryffindor-ish, she took a step towards him and, just as he was about to open his mouth and say something, she kissed him on the lips. Not much, just lip contact. God, it felt good, even like that! They were so close, for the first time. Snape looked at her surprised, not reacting and when she retreated, about ten seconds later, he stared at her and said slowly, with a weird, tired voice:  
  
"Go to bed before I take any house points."  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Well, what did you think? Yeah, yeah, Snape's acting weird. Explanation in the next chapter. Oh, I'm starting to reaaally like this story!!! No, this is not self-commercial, it's a statement. And, no, I'm not Lockhart! But this is where the really fun part begins.  
  
Oh, I sooo love to write thank you's!!!  
  
Thanks to: the red Dragons Order: Yes, well, I guess it was pretty obvious, but at the time I wrote 'Behind the Veil', I had no idea I'll be posting this, sooo. And thanks for reviewing 'Behind the Veil'.  
  
To Naomie: I'm glad you like it!!!  
  
To QuantumFruitPunch: I'm sooo happy you like it! (  
  
To Iniysa: Thank you for reviewing! The GFT will be here soon. Wait a little. 


	11. Dark Teachers

Author's Note: Ooooh, I soooo love this chapter. Wish I was at Hogwarts this year! -and the next- This is where a certain person enters the story. (  
  
Chapter 11: Dark Teachers  
  
Severus Snape had a student in detention that night. She had nearly blown up the whole goddamned classroom! Idiotic, blasted, students, not giving a damn about the great arts of potion-making!!! He looked at his watch and thought it was time to let her go. He walked to her said:  
  
"Enough for today"  
  
She jumped and dropped the rag with which she was just cleaning a jar. Dumb students, getting scared of everything! She picked the rag up and stood up at merely half a meter from him. Too close. Idiotic girl, why wouldn't she make a step behind? He sure as hell wouldn't. Then, suddenly, she moved a step towards him and just as he was about to ask her what the hell was she doing, she kissed him. Her warm lips pressed against his cold ones.  
  
His mind stopped thinking. Surprise took over his senses. After she got off him, all he could say was that she should go to bed before he took any house points. Darn, was there anything more idiotic he could say?!  
  
As the girl left the dungeon, he went to his room and let himself fall on the bed. Surprise was still in control and all he could do was try to calm down. Damn, he hadn't been this surprised since his former master had fallen because of a baby. As he started to calmed down his mind started working again. Why on Earth did she kiss him? Did she like him? No, she couldn't, could she? Maybe she could. No! Of course not! Could she? Probably, after all, she did kiss him. For that, he'd curse her into oblivion tomorrow. Damned girl!  
  
But did he really want to curse her into oblivion? Yes, the girl kissed him, how dared she? Maybe she was making fun of it now with Potter. No, no student could go that far with him. Damn, how he hated this.  
  
Maybe he should accept it and never ever get too close to her. By no possible means! Ever! Was he afraid of her? No, but he didn't want a weird girl following him around and daring to kiss him. If she was a woman who made it clear that she loved him, maybe, maybe, maybe he'd see if she's alright. Yeah, a beautiful woman who liked potions and could understand what he told her. A smart woman with a bit of courage. Letting him take complete control over her and everything. No stupid scenes like women usually made. She'd have to be kind and good, but not faint when she saw his potion ingredients. She'd have to not be afraid of him.  
  
He looked around his room. The cauldrons and potions were his companions in life. How he loved them and the sound they made and the way the potions hissed and changed! But sometimes he was getting lonely. And this was one of those sometimes.  
  
"Damn it!" he said and shook his head. He was the Potion Master, he wasn't lonely. Ever. He never needed anybody. Not a stupid student, not a beautiful, smart, kind, loving, wonderful woman! Damned student who blew up the classroom, couldn't even put a few ingredients right and making him think of. Wait. Something was wrong in the scene. What? Nothing. She had blown up the room and couldn't make one potion right! Not one! But. But.  
  
His mind stopped a little. But she usually did get potions right! So, she. she must have had it planned! She wanted to prove him that she liked him and she did it, by any means! How Slytherin of her! And in the same time, how Gryffindor! But what to do? What to do? Kill her? No, Azkaban. Hex her into oblivion? No, then everybody would know what had happened and letting the whole school know that he had been kissed and couldn't react at the time was not on his to-do list. Let it be? Yes, but never, ever, letting her close to him again. That would be it. And take as many points as possible off her house for punishment. And then hand her over to Filch after she had finished cleaning up the classroom.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
The next morning, Amala woke up feeling quite weird. What would Snape do? Did she do the right thing? Probably not. But, then again, was there any right thing she could do?  
  
She got dressed up and woke Hermione.  
  
"Get up, get up, it's time to go to breakfast!" she said and sighed.  
  
The two girls went down to the Great Hall and stood in front of Ron and Harry who were already there. They took some food and started eating. Amala was wondering when she should tell them about kissing Snape -last night they were asleep when she came back, she had walked a bit through the castle after the detention- when Dumbledore stood up and said:  
  
"I am sorry to say that Mrs. Rose has had some problems at home and she has left for a while. The ones there told her that her friend is terribly sick and she thought she could help. She also said that she will take a short vacation since some of her business is not done yet. Professor Snape will take her classes until we find a replacement."  
  
"Oh, no! Two classes with the git!" said Ron desperately.  
  
"Talking about whom, how was your detention last night?" asked Harry.  
  
"I'll tell you later", she answered, concentrating on her food. Would Snape hate her? God, what if she was wrong kissing him?!  
  
They finished their breakfast and headed towards the Defence room. Instead of the cheering-up Rose, they found the usually depressing Snape.  
  
"Sit down class", he said in his usual tone. "Today we'll study a new type of shield spell."  
  
Well, the class wasn't as bad as Amala thought it would be. The Potion Master did not even stare at her. He was acting as if nothing had happened. Maybe it was a good sign. O.K., he did take twenty points from Gryffindor because of her, but that happened a lot, even before.  
  
How good he looked, how she wished he wasn't mad at her! As he walked around the classroom, criticizing everything between heaven and earth, she dreamed on and on. What if he was mad at her? Because she kissed him? Oh, yes. A kiss. Gods, why did she do it? But was it for the best? Or for the worst? As he got close to her, she looked at her peace of parchment and gaped. She had written neatly a lot of things that she shouldn't have. Definitely not!  
  
'This shield is incredibly hard to do. The wrist movement mad at me. Because I kissed him. Some might find that hard. How can you say that, Longbottom? Flick and kiss. Incantation five points from Gryffindor.'  
  
She opened her eyes in horror and hid the piece of parchment in her pocket. Then she took a new piece of parchment and copied everything from Hermione who was next to her, staring at her. Severus came and looked at her parchment.  
  
"Yes, it is correct, Ms. Wright. Ten points from Gryffindor for copying this from Ms. Granger. Yes, I saw that!"  
  
Amala let go of the breath she hadn't known she was holding as he moved away. Thank God he hadn't acted weird!  
  
After this class, she took Harry, Ron and Hermione a bit apart from the other students and started:  
  
"I like Snape."  
  
"Yeah, we know that" said Ron looking at her weird. "You don't have to repeat it every hour, you know!"  
  
Harry looked around. He had the feeling something brushed by him. Nah, it was nothing.  
  
"And yesterday I did something."  
  
Harry's eyes widened.  
  
"What?" he asked.  
  
"I. I kissed him."  
  
The others stared at her. Ron's face was both surprised and disgusted. Hermione was shocked. Actually, so was Harry.  
  
"You. Kissed. Snape." Said Ron  
  
"Yeah, I did." she said in nearly a whisper.  
  
"And what did he do?" asked Hermione after getting a bit out of shock.  
  
"Nothing" she replied truthfully. "He stood there, surprised. And then he told me to go of to bed before he takes any house points."  
  
"That's Snape. Wouldn't recognize love if it hit him in the head. Or kissed him" said Ron matter-of-factly. Oh, well, ate least he was starting to accept the idea.  
  
They set of for their next class. Harry was wondering what Snape would do next. Why didn't he blast her to the next Ice Age? Maybe because he was surprised. Yeah, that was probably it. Man, Amala had courage!  
  
/*-/*-/*-  
  
That night, Snape stood in his chair. Would he do anything about the Gryffindor girl? Maybe. Hex her into oblivion? Nah.The door of the dungeon opened and he stared at her. She looked at him with a bit of fear in her eyes, then took the rag and started cleaning up like she had done for two detentions now. He looked at her, unsure of what he was supposed to do.  
  
He got of the chair and started walking through the dungeon as if he were thinking. Actually, he noted, that was exactly what he was doing. No, he wouldn't do anything. Damn the schoolgirl's crush! He was the Potion Master, the cold as ice Slytherin and he would not give up to his wish and hex her. Or blast her to the next Ice Age.  
  
After a long while, he looked at his watch. It was time to let her go.  
  
"You may go to the Gryffindor Common Room" he said and she got up, ready to leave. Suddenly, he did the most idiotic thing he had ever done in his life. "Oh, Mrs. Wright!" he said walking towards her.  
  
"Yes?" she said turning towards him.  
  
He just went to her and kissed her. Her eyes opened in surprise and she replied.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Amala was running on the corridors, hoping to not run into Filch. She went through the Fat Lady's portrait and jumped on a chair at the table Harry, Ron and Hermione were doing their Herbology homework.  
  
"What's up?" asked Harry looking curiously at her. Maybe because she looked like a sprint runner.  
  
"Snape kissed me!" she whispered.  
  
"What? The slime ball has a heart?!" said Ron, surprised, shocked and disgusted.  
  
"Whoa!" was all Harry could say.  
  
"Are you sure?" asked Ron.  
  
"Yes I'm sure!" said Amala. "How can you not be sure about someone kissing you or not?!"  
  
"Snape. Kissed. You" said Ron. "What did you do to him? Are you sure it was him and not someone with Polyjuice that looked like him?!"  
  
"Yes!" she said again, glaring murderously at him.  
  
"Disgusting!" said Ron. "You know you're crazy, right?"  
  
"How was it?" asked Hermione.  
  
"Weird. I wasn't expecting it. And I don't think that even he had planned it. Definitely weird"  
  
"You know, since you came here, you saved Sirius, you made Snape fall in love with you. You're weird!" said Ron. "But in the good way!' he added when Hermione and Amala both glared at him. "And you did one impossible thing that I don't think anybody else ever done before or could have."  
  
"Well, I guess saving Sirius was special, but this is not the point here. The point is Snape kissing me."  
  
"I wasn't talking about Sirius coming back"  
  
"I don't know." she answered. "With Sirius it was weird, I felt as if I was helped through the whole thing. And I probably was. And with Snape. I'm not sure he's in love."  
  
"Why else would he, eh., kiss you?" asked Harry.  
  
"Dunno. I'm curious what'll happen next." She said.  
  
Harry made up his mind: the girl was weird, just like Ron had said. What else would she do? Make Voldemort come to the right side? Maybe it was easier than making Snape kiss someone because he wanted to.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
The next day in detention, Amala got through the door of the dungeon. Snape was there, looking at her from behind his desk.  
  
The man was feeling weird. What should he do now? He asked her to sit on a chair at his desk and she smiled widely and sat down. Why, why did he kiss her back? He hated relationships! But, maybe, it would turn out alright. She then said something about being sorry about the potion that she exploded. He was a bit taken aback, but he answered it was nothing and she said something about hearing about the explosion-thingy at her school and soon the started talking about potions. He relaxed a little. She was talking and, thank God, didn't expect him to say anything.  
  
By the end of the detention, he had even managed to smile a few times. The girl had humor. And she was somehow Slytherin-ish.  
  
He retreated behind his desk. Maybe he could get used to this. The girl made him smile a little. She was alright. And she knew Potions. He sighed and started correcting papers.  
  
/*-/*-/*-  
  
Amala was meeting Snape every detention and she always armed herself with patience. The man was like a block of ice. He smiled at things the others laughed their heads off and nearly al the time he looked suspiciously at her. But maybe she could soften him a little in time, gain his trust.  
  
Right now, she was heading with Harry, Ron and Hermione towards the Defence classroom. They entered and Snape wasn't there yet. They sat down and started chatting.  
  
When everybody was inside, a young man -about 25- entered the room and closed the door with a bang.  
  
"Hello, I am your new Defence against the Dark Arts teacher", he said and Amala's eyes widened.  
  
"My name is Jack Towers", he said and Harry, Ron and Hermione stared at him in surprise. He was the guy who popped around in the stories Mr. Weasley said!  
  
Amala recognized him right away: he was the guy that had told her to go and save Sirius. The one that Death herself called Multa Nomina.  
  
But nobody else seemed to notice their surprise and, the way he was looking there, like a not very powerful person, the Slytherins started sneering.  
  
"Quiet, there!" he said looking towards the Slytherins.  
  
But just then, Draco looked straight at him and said loud enough for everybody to hear:  
  
"And this young guy is supposed to teach us Defence."  
  
Towers' eyes narrowed dangerously and he asked Draco with a fake smile:  
  
"Is there a problem?"  
  
"Well, yeah", Draco said looking down at him. He didn't know why, but he had an urge to act badly towards the man. Oh, yeah, he looked like nothing more than a mere small person, not knowing anything. "You probably don't know anything about Dark Arts."  
  
The Professor said in a dangerous whisper:  
  
"And what do you know about Defence Against the Dark Arts, Mr. Malfoy?"  
  
"More than you think", Draco sneered.  
  
Just then it occurred to everybody in the room that Draco had done a mistake. A huge one. The man no longer looked powerless, but a dark feeling seemed to come from him and danger tensioned the room.  
  
"Well, then, Mr. Malfoy, if you think you know so much about Defence", he said getting slowly closer to Draco, "why don't you show us your great skills?"  
  
The classroom was getting cooler and cooler and Harry thought that the man felt a bit like a Dementor.  
  
Draco got a bit paler and said:  
  
"Duel you?"  
  
Towers moved slowly closer and said, with his voice lower and darker:  
  
"Can you? You can't even draw your wand, can you?"  
  
His eyes were glowing and Draco couldn't move his away from the man's and he started shaking.  
  
"You are in my power, Draco Malfoy and there is nothing you can do about it and you know it."  
  
The Dementor feeling was getting greater and greater. Harry felt that everything was cold and he could think of nothing happy. He just stood there, like the rest of the class, staring at Towers.  
  
"I know more about Dark Arts than you do, Draco. And I have many gifts that dark wizards have."  
  
The whisper of his voice was freezing their blood inside their veins and Draco was shivering badly.  
  
"Now, I will take you as my slave, Draco Malfoy, and you shall serve me for as long as I wish. For eternity."  
  
The words were rare and whispered. Shadows were moving around the classroom and Towers looked like a demon, his eyes glowing and darkness surrounding him from all sides.  
  
Draco was shivering worse then ever and as Towers was getting closer and closer, he started screaming of fear.  
  
"No! No! Please, please. Let me go! Let me go! No!" The boy's eyes were wide opened and full of fear and Harry felt his heart sink. He couldn't let Draco be enslaved, no matter that he was his enemy.  
  
Towers got closer to Draco, who seemed to be fainting and as the Professor was just about half a meter to Draco, he jumped up and yelled  
  
"NO!"  
  
Suddenly, Towers' eyes turned towards him and he was blinded with pain from his scar. It was just like when Voldemort touched him. He screamed in pain, but in a few seconds the pain was gone and so where the shadows and the dark aura that seemed to surround the Professor.  
  
Towers was standing now in front of him.  
  
"Are you alright, Potter?" he asked worryingly.  
  
Harry stared at him. Why was he worried? Why wasn't Draco dead yet? The blond boy was still shivering, but was calming down.  
  
"I'm sorry, Potter", Towers said. "I wasn't expecting anyone to interrupt and I was so surprised that I left my magic surround you too. That's why your scar hurt. Calm down, Harry."  
  
He went to the front of the class.  
  
"I do believe Professor Rose told you about the ways you can protect yourselves against the Dark Arts, right? Well, I'm the one wizard she knows that is dark and yet white. I wanted to make a point with Mr. Malfoy, whom I'd like to thank for volunteering to have Dark Magic put on him for a demonstration to the class", he sad with a devious smile. "Well, Mr. Malfoy, I wouldn't have hurt you anyway, maybe convince you to do anything under the power of fear. As many of you might have felt, I have the gift of the Dementors: I can make people relive their worst memories. Maybe Mr. Potter would have cast a Patronus spell on me if I'd have done that to him. And it would have worked. Or, you could have used the Green Flame Torch."  
  
The Green Flame Torch! Again, the same thing. What was up with this?  
  
"I-if you have a Dem-Dementor's gift can. can you give the Dementors' kiss?" Hermione asked shakingly.  
  
Towers looked at her weird and answered in a slow, sad voice:  
  
"Yes, I can."  
  
Half of the classroom shivered.  
  
"I have never done it, though, and I wouldn't do it to anybody at all, no matter whom. And I don't intend to do it now."  
  
This was weird. A man with Dementor powers. Not good. Yet, now he stood in front of them, peacefully, though sad for one reason or another.  
  
"Ask your questions, students" he said and looked around the class. "I know you have questions."  
  
"How did you get the power?" asked Harry, gathering all his Gryffindor courage.  
  
"That, Harry, is between me and my Master" he answered and looked around. "Yes, Neville."  
  
The boy looked surprised that the Professor knew his name, but said in a frightened voice:  
  
"How. how powerful are you?"  
  
"Very powerful, Neville. But I cannot do things that many great wizards put together cannot. But my Master can. He can do anything he likes."  
  
"And who. who is your Master?" asked the boy, shakingly.  
  
"I cannot give you his name, he'd have my head for it. But I will tell him that you asked and maybe he'll tell you."  
  
Neville looked terrified. He didn't want some weird, powerful wizard to come tell him anything. He just asked! For his parents!  
  
"My Master is great, indeed, and more powerful than many expect. He is one weird character. He is white in soul and dark in powers. If he is in a dark mood there seems to be no difference between him and Voldemort." Half the classroom shivered. "But there is. And he treats us like kings" he said and smiled. "Us, his adepts, I mean. Never has he put a Cruciatus on any of us, never has he killed us for a mistake, never has his anger flown upon us like a dark cloud for no reason. We are a group of people more different than any could imagine."  
  
"How did you end up as his servant?" asked Zabini Blaise.  
  
Towers smiled.  
  
"He chooses us, never do we choose him. I met him in a forest where I had retreated for a while. His eyes were glowing with power and I knew he was my Master. For all living creatures have a Master, even if they know of him or not. Since then have I served him and being his servant I am more my master than ever. And being his slave I am freer than I had ever been."  
  
Harry looked at him questioningly. What did he mean? And did he, Harry, also have a Master. And if yes, who was he?  
  
"Does he control you?" asked Neville. "I mean, does he use you as slaves?"  
  
"Yes and no. Do you think I'd praise a man that would enslave me? But, we are much alike, although his power is way greater than mine. I trust his judgment and I know that he has never failed me. He has let me do whatever I wanted, but always told me his opinion. He is great and wise, but not a dictator, by no means! He might destroy his enemies cold-blooded, but to us he is like a father. And he tells us what is right and what is wrong, and what is the best way to go. But not always, he lets us think on our own, he lets us develop our power and helps us when we are in real need. It is he who guided me to this job as teacher. He told me that since I have nothing better to do, I could take it. I agreed and here I am!"  
  
The class stared at him.  
  
"Does each of us have a Master?" asked Harry.  
  
"Yes, even if you do not know it." Towers replied.  
  
"But who's mine?"  
  
"It could be anybody, Harry." The man replied. "And the Master you have now might not be the Master you will have after a year. You see, the Master is the person who guides you on your way. And if you change enough, your old Master won't suit you and you will have another. But he will always be there for you. And remember, every Master has another Master, until you get to the Master of all Masters who is directly or indirectly yours too."  
  
"And who is he?"  
  
Towers looked at him with a weird expression on his face.  
  
"I won't answer that question, Harry, for it cannot be. But I will tell you this: my Master is just under this Master of all Masters. And in death they shall become one as so will I through my death."  
  
"So, through death you unite with your Master?" concluded Hermione.  
  
"Yes, but we're not talking about physical death, although in my case that is exactly it. We're talking about another death. It might be hard for you to understand, children."  
  
"What kind of death?" asked Harry. What other kind of death was there?  
  
"That is not a question I will answer now." Towers said with a tone of finality. "Because this is totally another subject and it has nothing to do with magic. Or it rather has everything to do with magic, it is the core of magic. So, it has nothing to do with spells and other things you learn here."  
  
He paused and looked dreamily out the window.  
  
"But why am I telling you all this?" He asked, suddenly turning towards them. "Oh, well. Let's go to our Defence business, shall we?"  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
He, he! Towers entered the story, hurray! I've been waiting to do this for a looong time. Well, since my first chapter, actually. Well, go ahead, review, tell me what you think!!! About Snape's little kiss, about Towers' first class. Oh yeah, life is great!!!  
  
Thanks: to bogdan_ag, the Red Dragons Order - Yes, she kissed Snape.- 


	12. Duel On the Halls

Disclaimer: If you people think it's mine, then you're crazy.  
  
Chapter 12: Duel on the halls  
  
Harry got up next morning with one hell of a headache. Towers' class, Defence Against the Dark Arts, was weird. Very weird. He remembered that Dumbledore had introduced Towers to the whole school and that Snape had a weird expression, as if he was trying to remember something, on his face. Maybe a long lost evil potion that would kill the new teacher in pain. Yeah, that would be it. Another man had just taken his favorite subject!!!  
  
And today he had Defence Against Magical Creatures with Hagrid. Who knew what Hagrid would bring them again. So, if he survived on Tuesday, he had to be dead by Wednesday afternoon. Great.  
  
As he went downstairs with Ron, Hermione and Amala he wondered what creature Hagrid would show him today.  
  
"Well, well, if it isn't Potter with his little group of admirers" a voice said somewhere in his right.  
  
"Hello, Malfoy, see you're still flanked by gorillas" replied Amala.  
  
"Nobody asked you, weirdo!" said Draco, his eyes narrowing.  
  
"How dare you call her a weirdo, Malfoy?!" asked Harry, getting slightly pissed off.  
  
"I call anybody who has crushes on teachers a weirdo, Potter."  
  
Amala got a pink color on her face.  
  
"What the hell do you mean, Malfoy?" she asked coolly.  
  
"There's a rumor through the school that you like Snape"  
  
"There's also a rumor through the school that you like him too, Malfoy" she answered and people around started looking towards them.  
  
Ron and Harry stared at her. What?! How.When.Who? It seemed that Draco was thinking within the same lines.  
  
"What the hell are you talking about?!" he asked with a weird expression on his face.  
  
"You fancied him since you came to Hogwarts, admit it, Malfoy!" she said a slightly amused look on her face.  
  
"You're lying!" he said madly and she burst into laughter.  
  
"Well, so are you, Malfoy, so cut the crap!" she said and started moving towards the Great Hall. The group of people around them wanted to make way, but Draco called after her.  
  
"Trying to find a decent way out of the situation, right, Mud-blood?"  
  
Amala stopped dead in her tracks. Her eyes narrowed and all the cheerfulness vanished from her face. She slowly turned around.  
  
"You are so low, Malfoy." She said coolly. "Saying things you know nothing about. My parents are both wizards. And even if it is so, I won't forgive it soon."  
  
"Really?!" he said grinning. "What are you going to do?"  
  
She looked at him and shook her head and turned around. However, Draco lost his head for a second and took out his wand and yelled "Petrificus Totalus!" Amala turned quickly as he started speaking, but got hit by the spell before she could realize what was happening. Harry took out his wand and yelled "Tarantalegra!" hitting Draco fully. The Slytherin turned towards him and yelled "Expalliarmus!" as his legs started moving. The spell hit Harry who lost his wand and Draco crashed on the floor, not managing to keep his balance. Harry jumped after his wand and just as he caught it, a dark voice was heard through the corridor.  
  
"What's going on here?"  
  
Harry raised his eyes and looked at the speaker. Towers stood there, in front of him, looking him straight in the eyes.  
  
"Amala and Malfoy had a quarrel and Malfoy petrified her when she turned her back on him" Hermione started saying from one breath. "Harry put the Tarantalegra jinx on him and he made Harry lose his wand" answered Hermione.  
  
"So, a duel" Towers said, looking at Hermione. "I'm afraid that we can't have that."  
  
He turned towards the petrified Amala and said the counter-curse, then towards Draco and did the same.  
  
"Never turn your back on the enemy, Mrs. Wright!" he said calmly. "It is not wise, as you probably found out."  
  
Amala nodded and pointed out the fact that she had not even thought of jinxing Draco.  
  
"Yes, about that" Towers said. "Mr. Malfoy, I'm sure that you've never heard about honor, but even so, you should know not to strike a person who has not even taken out his or her wand, even less should you do it if the person has his or her back towards you. That was low. Very low. Therefore, I will take fifty points from Slytherin."  
  
"Fifty?!" Draco said with an awful look on his face.  
  
"Think I exaggerated?" Towers asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Yes", Draco said matter-of-factly. "It wasn't such a big deal."  
  
"You're right, it shouldn't have been fifty" the Professor responded and Harry, Ron, Hermione gaped. "Make that. seventy. And detention for a week."  
  
Draco gaped and, as a matter of fact, so did every student on the corridor. Because, of course, many people had gathered to see what was going on.  
  
"And Potter." Towers said and a small, amused smile appeared on his face. "Well, it's nice of you to protect your friends, but since we are at school and dueling is not allowed on the corridors, I'll have to take twenty points from Gryffindor and will give you. three nights of detention."  
  
The students in the outer part of the circle moved away and Snape moved forward towards the scene.  
  
"Ah, Severus, how nice of you to join!" Towers said and smiled.  
  
"What's going on here?" he asked and glared at the five students and the Professor.  
  
"Well, Mr. Malfoy here decided to attack Mrs. Wright while she turned her back on him."  
  
"Is that right?" asked Snape and glared at Draco. "I would have expected more from my own house. Thirty points from Slytherin and."  
  
"Thirty points to Slytherin, I already took seventy."  
  
Snape's expression was weird. He glared at Towers and looked a bit outraged.  
  
"I'm sure that it is not necessary to take so many points, for the mistake of just one student."  
  
"Yeah, well, I tried to take fifty, but Mr. Malfoy didn't seem to want to accept. Didn't think it was such a big deal. Oh, right, he has detention for one week. And Mr. Potter has detention for three nights and twenty points taken from Gryffindor for hexing Mr. Malfoy after that. I'm sure you agree."  
  
Snape didn't seem to agree, but nodded and glared at Draco.  
  
"Come with me, Mr. Malfoy" he said and left through the students that were moving away from his path, not wanting to be ran down by the Potion Master. Draco walked behind him, not looking very happy.  
  
"Well, that was fun!" Towers said after they moved away. Harry looked at him and saw that the man was grinning. "Shall we go to breakfast?" he asked the four Gryffindors. "Have a feeling it won't be an easy day."  
  
They entered the Great Hall and sat down at the table, taking some food for breakfast. Soon enough, the owl post came. Hermione looked at her copy of the Daily Prophet and gaped.  
  
"Guys, look!" she said showing the front page to Ron, Harry and Amala.  
  
New Murder: Allebara Ronald found dead in her house  
  
Allebara Ronald has been found dead in her house in Shrewsbury. However, the question is whether or not He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is behind this murder. No Dark Mark was found over her house, although she has been killed by the Avada Kedavra curse. The Ministry of Magic is wondering if the person who killed her was a Death Eater or not, a well-known wizard having been seen around her house that day, around the time she has been killed.  
  
"It might not have been He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named behind the murder, but why is there no Dark Mark over her house?" asks Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic, "The Aurors think that somebody else might be behind this, but he shall not be named, since nothing can be known for sure. But we can assure you that we will do anything to find the murderer and put him behind bars."  
  
"There have been no signs of struggle" says Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt. "That is why we think that the attacker might have been a friend of hers. Or she had been attacked by surprise. I think it is the second option. I do believe that this is somehow linked to the murder of Monica Kane."  
  
"This is the second murder since He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named came back and the world knows it" says Nymphadora Tonks. "And something tells me that he is behind it. It is true that a certain wizard has been seen on both occasions around the victims' house, but I do not think that it is he who did it."  
  
As this murder is being investigated, the magical community can only wait and see what happens next.  
  
Special correspondent, Rita Skeeter.  
  
"I wonder who this 'certain wizard' is" said Amala. "And why they wouldn't tell us his name."  
  
"Because then he'd know and hide his tracks better next time or something" answered Hermione.  
  
"There are two things that freak me out here" said Harry, looking at the paper. "That there's another murder and that Skeeter hasn't been as awful as usual."  
  
"That's because I threatened her, remember?" asked Hermione. "Who do you think is behind the murder?"  
  
"Towers. Or probably Voldemort" answered Harry and Ron and Amala shivered.  
  
/*-/*-/*-  
  
That it wouldn't be an easy day was an understatement! Hagrid showed them again one of his monsters, which they hardly escaped and the other classes weren't so easy either. Potions was difficult, as always, Transfiguration was getting better. Tomorrow they'd have Defence again and Harry started wondering not only what the weird new teacher had in mind for tomorrow, but also what he planned for detention that night.  
  
Amala had acted normal with Snape, and he acted like a perfect. Snape and took points and sneered as usual.  
  
/*-/*-/*-  
  
Harry walked slowly to Towers' classroom. The man had been classified as 'weird' by everyone and he wondered what detention he'd give him. He was sure he wouldn't have to write lines or wash the floor. or would he? So, everything was possible, that was sure. Maybe he'd have to do something like last year, with Umbridge. Or maybe he'd be given a huge lecture of how bad it is to not obey school rules. Nah, the Professor seemed to be amused of the whole thing. Maybe it would be something fun. Nah, detention couldn't be fun. Could it?  
  
But as he walked towards Towers' classroom, he noticed that the door was opened and the room was dark. He slowed down and wondered what he should do. What if Towers was in trouble, or had forgotten about the detention? What if something bad had happened?  
  
Harry gathered all his courage and went to the opened door and looked inside. The room was dark and he couldn't see a thing. Something was wrong, very wrong there. He stood there for a few seconds.  
  
"Come in, Harry. I don't bite" said a voice inside that Harry recognized as Towers'. But it seemed much softer and silkier than before. Much more. sensual.  
  
The boy went a few steps inside and tried to find his Professor in the dark.  
  
"Close the door, will you?" he asked and Harry had to obey, although he had the feeling he should run away and not look back.  
  
As the door closed, the room became darker and Harry's eyes started to get used to the dark. Gods, something was soooo wrong!!! He saw the teachers' desk and the Professor sitting on the chair with his feet on the table, but he couldn't see his face, it was too dark. In fact, it was almost as if he couldn't see with his eyes, but feel where the man was.  
  
"Take a seat, Harry" he said and Harry looked around and saw a chair in front of the teachers' desk. He slowly walked to it, wondering why the Professor made him sit in the dark.  
  
'There are two explanations' a nasty voice inside his head said 'either he's a violent person, maybe a killer, who likes playing with his victim, or he's a.'  
  
Harry didn't want to think about this. He made it to the chair and sat down.  
  
"Now, Mr. Potter" Towers said in a pretty dark and dangerous tone, "Could you tell me what's going on between you and Mr. Malfoy?"  
  
Harry remembered that the man kept calling him either Potter or Harry and he couldn't think why he couldn't settle for one of the two.  
  
"We don't really like each other, sir. He always makes fun of either me or my friends and thinks he's on the top of the world because he's rich."  
  
Towers nodded and Harry realized how bad and childish it sounded and blushed. Lucky it was dark!  
  
"And why has he attacked Mrs. Wright?"  
  
"Because they had a quarrel and she defied him."  
  
"Why have they had a quarrel?"  
  
"Because he said that she had a crush on Snape and made fun of her because of that and she found a way out of the situation, making him look bad. And then he called her a Mud-Blood and she got annoyed and wanted to walk away. Then Malfoy jinxed her."  
  
"And you attacked Malfoy?"  
  
"Yes"  
  
Towers got up from his chair and slowly walked towards Harry. Noooot good! Definitely, absolutely, not good!!!  
  
"That wasn't a smart thing to do, Harry, not with Snape walking around. You're lucky I came around, my detentions are not as bad as his."  
  
Harry shivered as Towers came closer and closer. Something in him told him to forget everything and run as fast as he could or hex the Professor into oblivion, but his feet and arms, as well as every other part of his body decided it was a good time to give up on him. His mind raced and showed him images he could really do without. A bad feeling appeared in his stomach and fear started to take over him.  
  
"You must keep your temper down" said Towers, getting closer and closer. "It's for your own good. And we must make sure that this won't happen again."  
  
Towers was at about half a meter from Harry and the boy could feel his presence and could see his eyes glittering in the dark. Harry's breath got quicker and his heart was beating like crazy, but the Professor didn't seem to notice.  
  
"At least attack with the impediment curse, if it does happen, Harry, you'd make sure he won't harm you afterwards. And get a teacher."  
  
Towers was standing now on his right, looking down on him.  
  
"I'll teach you about battles, Harry. But not here and not now"  
  
His eyes were glittering at about forty centimeters from Harry's own eyes. The Gryffindor's mind raced as the Professor talked slowly, nearly in a whisper. One of Towers' hands was put on his shoulder, making Harry shiver and want to run. It was too creepy. Too much like a horror movie. His breath was fast and he could feel his heart beating so much it felt it was going to get out of his chest soon.  
  
Towers put his other hand on Harry's other shoulder and leaned towards the petrified boy. When their faces were ten centimeters apart, the Professor whispered:  
  
"I will teach you many things, Harry. because I like you."  
  
Harry's mind stopped.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Author's Note: Well, that was fun! *grins evilly and narrows eyes dangerously*. When you're the writer, you can make anything happen! And you can even leave cliff-hangers! Well, send me your reviews. And especially: your opinion on the new side of Towers. Oh, yeees. Towers.  
  
Oh, man, *sighs* I've spent too much time with Akvar and now I have a dark sense of humor. *grins* And I think I like it!  
  
Thanks *gods I love this part!!!*:  
  
To: Meggs: Thank you, I'll take that as an ultimate compliment! *grins*  
  
Iniysa: *bows* Thank you!  
  
Babyjayy: Thank you, thank you!!!  
  
The red dragons order: Yes. Towers is here. And as you can see, this is more and more interesting!!!  
  
Naomie: *laughing*: I'm glad you like Towers. Or should I say liked him? Hmmmm. 


	13. Defence Beyond Defence

Author's Note: Keep your eyes on Jack Towers. And don't think you've figured him out: you haven't. He is both dark and light, as you could see. Both of them. The Red Dragons Order suggested he was a vampire. Maybe yes, maybe no, maybe. maybe something else. 50 points to whoever guesses who -or what- he is! -hey, this is good! Maybe I should try having a contest here! Yeah, on points. Oh, never mind, nobody will guess Towers anyway. But it's a good idea for the future. Tell me what you think-  
  
Towers' my favorite character in many of my stories and just couldn't see this story without him. Keep your eyes on him: it's worth it.  
  
Oh, and Harry isn't gay. This is not SLASH.  
  
Chapter 13: Defence beyond Defence  
  
Towers put his other hand on Harry's other shoulder and leaned towards the petrified boy. When their faces were ten centimeters apart, the Professor whispered:  
  
"I will teach you many things, Harry. because I like you."  
  
Harry's mind stopped.  
  
"And I don't want to see you dead, Harry!" whispered Towers, his face even closer to Harry's, mouth nearly touching his, breath on his lips.  
  
A few more millimeters and Harry felt the man's lips on his own.  
  
"LEAVE ME ALONE!!!" he yelled and jumped from the chair, pulling his wand out of his pocket.  
  
Towers was looking at him. smiling. He clapped his hands once and the light went on, hurting Harry's eyes.  
  
"And you shall be easy to teach, you have good control of yourself and a certain. thirst for knowledge."  
  
"What are you doing?!" Harry asked and Towers looked at him weirdly.  
  
"Testing you. You show great courage, Harry. And fear cannot bring you down completely, I see. At first I was disappointed, but now I understand. When you have nothing to lose, then you show your real strength. A brave lion, I would say."  
  
"What?" Harry's head was spinning. What on Earth was going on? Why did the Professor try to kiss him and now act as if. as if. nothing had happened?  
  
"It was a test, Harry. Nor more, nor less. I tested your capability to face fear. Your intuition, I've heard, has done you great good in the past and so will it now."  
  
"Why did you."  
  
"Act as if I were going to kiss you?!" Towers said and burst into laughter. "It was part of the test. Quite ingenious I'd say. If I attacked you, you'd be in a situation you were in before. You'd know what to do. You have dueled Voldemort what. 3 times?! And survived encountering him. 5 times, if you count the last. And you fought with Death Eaters. So, attack was out of question. Dementors you can handle and you saw that before, so out of question. It had to be something you definitely had not encountered before. And my choice was best, in my opinion. You know, I should write an article about this: 'What Would You Do if Your Teacher Wanted to Kiss You and He Would Be of the Same Sex and You'd be Straight'. No,. too long for a title, don't you think?"  
  
Harry was half listening. He still had his wand in his hand. His teacher was again acting as if nothing serious had happened. He was babbling now, seeming to have lost contact with reality. Who was the man? And what was up with him? How could he just change his personality from a second to another? How could he be so menacing this moment and so harmless the other? How could he sound so serious and then babble about. what was it? Oh, yeah, stupid articles.  
  
"Leave your wand down, Harry, I won't hurt you. Or do anything you wouldn't want to be done to you. And just to assure you, I'm straight. I really am. I know I can be convincing at some moments" Towers said and grinned. "I might not have a girlfriend at the moment, but still."  
  
Harry stared at him and lowered his wand, but still didn't let go of it.  
  
"Thanks. So, Harry, I'm glad you're here, I wanted to teach you some things. I was serious about that part, although I doubt you really heard me."  
  
"What do you want to teach me?"  
  
"Many things. About magic that is a bit deeper than these things you learn at school. So, tell me, Harry, do you know any objects that are a legend to the wizard kind?"  
  
Harry took a while to think. Not only about the question, but about the weirdness of Towers.  
  
"The Philosopher's Stone" he answered, deciding that it had been long enough for the Professor to consider him a total retarded person.  
  
"Good. I do believe you rescued it, didn't you? It has been destroyed, I do believe. Do you know what it did?"  
  
"It could transform metal into gold. And it could be used to create the Elixir of Life." What did this have to do with anything????  
  
"What does the Elixir do?"  
  
"It makes the one who drinks it immortal." And what the hell was Towers' talking about? What was up with magical objects? Hello, teacher! You just tried to kiss me!!!  
  
"Yes and yet not quite. It makes your life longer. Of course, if you keep taking it, you become immortal. Do you know any other object?"  
  
Harry thought about it. Oh, well, he might just go with Towers. so, an object. The Green Flame Torch! But he wasn't going to mention it, since he wasn't supposed to know about it. But still, what the hell was up with the Professor?  
  
"Well, do you?"  
  
"No"  
  
Towers looked at him and Harry felt as if he was x-rayed. Then, he smiled.  
  
"Have you heard of Golden Amulets?"  
  
"Yes" Harry remembered. He also had one!  
  
"What do they do?"  
  
"Umm. Well."  
  
"Um.Well. you don't have the slightest idea" concluded Towers. "No problem. You're not going to lose anything if you say you don't. They glow red when there is danger around their barer. And they summon great light forces if you are in great need."  
  
Harry suddenly remembered Hermione saying this.  
  
"Can.can you tell if one is real or not?" He asked.  
  
"I think I could. And I think I'm not greatly mistaking when I guess you have one yourself."  
  
Harry stared at him. How did he know? Towers smiled and continued:  
  
"I should know. It was a good friend of mine that sold them to you. They are real. He also stuck around you long enough to hear your friend say that real ones valued at least ten times the price."  
  
Harry gaped.  
  
"And your friend was wrong, Harry. They're worth at least two-hundred times the price. And these ones even more."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"I know the force they serve. It is not one that helps mortals easily. But they were given to you as gifts. A small price was needed. As a symbol. Wear them and convince your friends to wear them too. They might help."  
  
Harry nodded.  
  
"Oh, sit down." Towers said, noticing that they were still standing. He took the chair Harry sat down on and placed it in front of his desk and then sat down behind it. "And make yourself comfortable." Yeah, as if that was possible when your teacher is acting like at least two different people!  
  
Harry sat down and looked at Towers. He slowly put his wand back in his pocket.  
  
"Now, Harry. I know you've heard of the Green Flame Torch."  
  
O.K., this was annoying. Did this man know everything?!  
  
"Do you know what it does?"  
  
"It keeps evil away and helps fight against it."  
  
"More or less. It keeps darkness away from it through its light power. It can only be found by the good side. It will only serve good. But it can be destroyed by evil. An evil person, powerful enough to do it. Would you happen to know one?"  
  
"Voldemort." Harry said in a whisper.  
  
"Correct! But he can't find it. He's evil, it won't let itself be found by him. But if it is found, it can be seen by any person and it can be destroyed."  
  
"How can it hide?"  
  
"Ah, Harry. Everything in this world is alive. Even death is. The thing that depends is how conscious is the thing and in what way. The Green Flame Torch is quite conscious. Of course, you will never be able to talk to it or understand it. But it is alive and it knows who is good and who is evil and it can hide itself or un-hide itself."  
  
"Aha." Harry said, not quite understanding.  
  
"The one who has found it will be able to summon it from nearly anywhere -well, in certain limits, actually, but they are very large-, if it isn't entrapped with spells and from the same room or twenty meters in diameter if it is entrapped."  
  
"And how can it help?"  
  
"In many ways, Harry. It could make your spells stronger, or cast a shield over you, or carry you away from danger. It can do many things, but not without you telling it. And after it feels its job is over, it will disappear."  
  
"Just like that?"  
  
"Let's just say that when you go to bed at night, it's still there and wake up it isn't. Or that it disappears when you use it the last time."  
  
Harry looked at him weird.  
  
"I want you to call your friends tomorrow. This will not be detention, this will be special training. My heart tells me that you will need it. Of course, Harry, trouble seems to like you very much, so it wouldn't be a surprise to anyone if you get into it again. I will teach the great arts of war and battle." He looked at him and sighed. "God knows I've been in enough to know how it goes."  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
The next morning, Harry got up and woke up Ron. He had told him, Hermione and Amala all about the detention he had had and Hermione suggested that everybody who had been in the 'rescue party' at the end of the last year should go there. And that maybe even Amala should join.  
  
Amala was just telling them about her meeting with Snape.  
  
"The man is a block of ice." She said and sighed. "I wish he'd stop looking at me with his usual glare."  
  
"Now you're wishing for the impossible" commented Ron.  
  
"Yeah, I do know he's a greasy git and all that, but still."  
  
"Oh, don't worry" Hermione said, trying to comfort her. "And have a bit of patience."  
  
"Yeah" continued Ron, "he's a greasy git, you've said it yourself, and he has absolutely no idea that people actually have hearts out here. Come on, even his name involves snapping."  
  
"A greasy git, yes, but a nice greasy git. With a killing glare and a rock heart and slimy hair and always snapping. A nice horrible monster" she laughed, remembering some of the names Snape had been called.  
  
"Ah, Mrs. Wright" she heard from behind and froze in the spot. "How nice to see you here"  
  
They turned, horror stricken, seeing the 'greasy git' right in front of them. He was looking angry and his voice had been dark and menacing. Like the person in front of them.  
  
"Forty points from Gryffindor. And see you in tonight's detention, Mrs. Wright" he added and walked away, robes fluttering behind him, making him look like an awful large bat.  
  
"Oh, no" Amala said and a tear rolled down her cheek. "Oh, no, oh no, oh no!"  
  
"You're in trouble" said Ron.  
  
"Deep trouble" added Harry.  
  
"Very deep trouble. He thinks you're making fun of him" said Hermione.  
  
Amala tried to compose her face so that it wouldn't be horror-stricken and then walked to the Great Hall, nobody able to comfort her.  
  
/*/*/*/*  
  
They ate breakfast and went for their classes. They had Defence that morning and everybody was eager to find out what Towers had planned for them. They entered the classroom and he was already there.  
  
"Good morning, class!" he said and smiled. "Today, many of you may be facing their worst fears in their class!"  
  
Harry and Ron exchanged looks. Lockhart had said something along the same lines and he was a horrifyingly bad teacher. Towers also had a covered cage and Harry and Ron started wondering if the man would also show them Cornish pixies.  
  
"No, wait, that was the speech for the third years. Oops." He said and chuckled. "I was going to show them a Boggart."  
  
Draco was looking weird at Towers and Harry recalled that he had had a detention with Towers too, probably after he had left. He wondered what the blonde Slytherin had done in his detention.  
  
"But many of you may fear this creature" he said as they sat down in their benches. "Behold a creature of the dark! Behold a death bringer! Behold a Necrow!" He said and pulled the cover off the cage. Inside there was a black, ugly bird with reptilian skin.  
  
Towers smiled darkly and said:  
  
"This bird calls the name of the ones that will die in the next three months. You could call it a dark Seer."  
  
The classroom shivered. It seemed to be cooler in the classroom. The bird looked like Death itself, with that awful black skin and small, red eyes. It gave a few screeches like a strangled child, sending chills down their backs. Then it looked at Towers and he smiled evilly, his eyes shinning with something Harry couldn't describe. maybe madness. Harry watched it turn its head towards the classroom and knew what would happen. His heart gave a painful throb. The bird's eyes were looking evilly at everybody in the class.  
  
Its eyes scouted the classroom, slowly, under Tower's more and more evil look and smile. There. Malfoy. Crabbe. Goyle. Blaise. it's look had passed Neville and was coming to him. Seamus, Ron.him.  
  
"Harry Potter" it said in a voice that sounded like a strangled child. The classroom stared at Harry in shock and he gulped. Then, it looked at Hermione and said in the same voice: "Hermione Granger"  
  
She started shaking badly. The class looked at Towers, who had a very evil smile on his face. His eyes were narrowed and he looked like an angel of death.  
  
"So, it is the two of you that shall die in the next three months. Be sure to meet me on the other side, mortals!" his voice was dark and dangerous. "I will be there to witness your weakness and fear, be sure of that. And I shall lead you into despair and hell. Ask for the demon of fear."  
  
Hermione stood there on the edge of fainting and Harry just stared at the man. His glare was nearly unbearable. Then, suddenly, his eyes relaxed and his smile changed into a large grin and then into a happy laughter.  
  
"Gods, I love scaring the hell out of people! Calm down, kids, you're going to be fine. It's just my sadistic sense of humor. Now, please relax. I'm no demon of fear and I've never been in death, I just like to scare people. Sorry, I couldn't help myself."  
  
Harry and Hermione let their breaths out. How could anybody joke about that?! And what was with the names???  
  
"The Necrows are very powerful birds with great intelligence. They attack quickly and try to confuse and maybe even kill their opponent. Now, they call names to scare the ones around and they choose the ones that they would attack. Usually, those ones are the ones who have had encounters with darkness and yet are still white and are a threat to it. It is a simple reason, actually. The Necrows were created by dark wizards to kill their enemies, but the birds would eventually be killed, since it was easier to get rid of them in those times. So, they taught them to attack the ones that were of a greater danger and then fly out. Eventually, some Necrows escaped and started to breed in the wild and to grow in power, becoming quite dangerous and independent."  
  
They all looked at the bird, who was staring at them with its great, red eyes, now and then giving small screeches. Towers opened his mouth to continue, but the door of the classroom opened and they heard Snape's voice:  
  
"Mr. Towers, if you don't mind, I'd like to have a word with you."  
  
"Of course, Professor Snape. Be good and try not to tempt the Necrow"  
  
Towers got out the classroom and the bird gave a few screeches.  
  
"What a weird-looking thing!" Harry said, looking at the caged creature. "Ugly, too"  
  
"No kidding, mate?" asked Ron, looking at it.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
That night, a rather large group was going towards Tower's classroom. Harry had announced everybody who had been on the 'rescue mission' last year and Amala to come, but Amala had to decline because of her detention with Snape.  
  
"It's actually the first time I actually fear it" she said and then left.  
  
So, now Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, Luna and Ginny were heading towards the classroom.  
  
The door was closed and Harry knocked gently.  
  
"Come in, children" they heard Towers from inside.  
  
Harry entered first and his look circled the room. Towers was arranging some papers.  
  
"Good evening!" he said, after they all entered and greeted him. "Nice to see you all! Well, I've heard that you dueled quite a few Death Seekers last year" he said and giggled. "That takes power, preparation and courage. Thank you Harry for maintaining the level of a few students up with DA."  
  
"You know about that?" Harry asked, shocked. Or, maybe, he wasn't so shocked. The man seemed to know everything, in a Dumbledore way, or even better.  
  
"I know many things" came the reply. "Well, thank you. Here you will learn more than in class. Consider this.private lessons. I will call the best of all years here. Even the first years, even the last. I hope you don't mind."  
  
The others looked at him weird. It was his idea, he could call whomever he wanted. Couldn't he?  
  
"I will train you for I am afraid that your journey into the dark is far from finished."  
  
"How do you know?" Harry asked and slightly noticed how the man started talking a bit like in the books with old kings and knights when he was talking about certain things.  
  
"As I said, I know many things. And many of them are from sources I couldn't tell."  
  
"Aha." Harry said, not understanding  
  
Towers smiled.  
  
"Please take your wands out."  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Oh, well, this is it. A whole chapter basically about Towers. It won't happen again. Or will it? Well, I'll have to check how much I want to write about that part. Yeeees.. Does it deserve a chapter? Hmmm, probably. Yes, a chapter will do.  
  
Well, I'm done teasing :-). And I'm starting to talk about something else: how's weather? -Stupid question, I know :-)- I start thinking about this whole 'Global Warming Process'. I think they might be right, with one exception: hello, meteorologists around the world! It was SNOWING here a few days ago and it's supposed to be autumn. Fall. As in hot enough to wear light clothing -or at least relatively light- and a perfect weather to pick up apples. You know, at the middle of October!  
  
Could you imagine the surprise you have one morning when you wake up and look out the window and see snow? Especially since the meteorologists said it would be hot weather until November, at least? Of course, here they also said that the weather will be cooling gradually. As a great friend of mine said: "But it did cool gradually! From one day to another". Kind of a, since there were at least 20 degrees outside in one day and the most ten in the other.  
  
So, it snowed here for one night, now it's gone. It wasn't a thick layer. But still.  
  
So, you're probably wondering why I'm writing this, eh? It's because, being a writer -even amateur one- gives you a lot of freedom. You can even babble about weather for a while! *chuckles*. So, I hope all of you are fine. -Gods this sounds like a letter-. And if you think that this Author's Note is the least bit peculiar, please keep in mind that I've wrote this at 11 P.M. So, please forgive the authoress who becomes very talkative -or should I say writative- in the evenings.  
  
So, moving to my favorite part: the thanks. Please review, even if it is just to say 'I've read it'. It's a great feeling.  
  
So, thank you: Naomie: Thank you for reviewing. Yes, maybe I'll fit Lucius in this somehow.  
  
The Red Dragons Order: Towers? Vampire? Hmmm, I'll have to consider. Oh, and Akvar said he sent it to you. You don't want the quote.  
  
Meggs: Well, I'm glad you like it and I will keep up the evil. 


	14. The Attacks

Claimer: I own everything! Everything I tell you! It is mine, all mine! Mwahaha! *laughs normally*. Of course not! Who do you think I am, J. K. Rowling? No way, she is the real owner of Harry Potter, not me. And, if she desires, she can steal a few ideas from me, I don't mind. *people stare at her*. Jesus! Just kidding, guys! Can't you get a joke? She doesn't need to steal ideas, anyway. She has greater ones than I do!  
  
Disclaimer: Now that I had my fun with this part of the fic, I must say that I don't own Harry Potter. That if you still didn't get the point. Everything I wrote upper is a joke. So, if you sue for author rights, you're stupid.  
  
Chapter 14: The Attacks  
  
Harry had had a great -if such a thing was possible- detention with Towers. He had taught them a few spells for defence and let them practice. But as they went back to the common room, he decided he wanted some time to himself and stood behind, walking around on the corridors.  
  
Now, he was returning to his common room before he would run into Filch. It was a bit past the time when they were allowed outside and getting detention was not on his to-do list.  
  
He almost made it to his tower, thinking about -coincidentally- Towers since Harry's 'detention' was over.  
  
Suddenly, he bumped into somebody and they both were thrown backwards.  
  
"Watch where you're going, Potter!" cried the other person and Harry recognized him right away: Malfoy.  
  
"You too, Malfoy! What are you doing here after nightfall?  
  
"I could ask you the same thing, Potter."  
  
"I was walking around."  
  
"Good for you. Now get out of the way!"  
  
Oh, well, he had just given him information for nothing. Darn!  
  
"What are you doing here?"  
  
"It's none of your business!"  
  
"Maybe it is."  
  
"Is not. Get. Out. Of. The. Way!"  
  
"No. Where have you been?"  
  
"You're getting on my nerves, Potter!"  
  
"Well?"  
  
"It's none of your business!"  
  
"It is now."  
  
Draco was glaring at him.  
  
"I was in my detention. Are you pleased now, scarhead?!"  
  
Riiight, detention. How could he forget? Yeah, Towers' office was that way. Harry got out of the way, without minding this insult, and Draco passed him. Now, what happened to Draco in detention? Towers was weird, who knew what he made Draco do?!  
  
Harry walked faster towards his tower. He made it to the Fat Lady's portrait and said the password ("Lion heart").  
  
He entered and saw that Ron was alone in the common room.  
  
"Oh, Harry!" he said, seeing him. "Amala came here, looking as if she had been crying, just a few seconds ago. Do you think it has anything to do with her detention?"  
  
Right, Amala's detention! After how mad Snape had been when he heard her talking, he must have done something dreadful. In fact, maybe it was a surprise she was still alive.  
  
"Dunno" he said and shrugged, trying to look casual. "Where is she?"  
  
"Upstairs, in the girl's dorm, with Hermione"  
  
Great, how was he supposed to get there? But then, just as if it was to answer his thoughts, Hermione came down.  
  
"Oh, hi, Harry. Wow, we're not too many, are we?!" she said, looking around. Indeed, there was nearly nobody there -a first year just came in, Harry seemed to remember her-, since the next day it would be a school day and. Good point, why were they so few? "I think Amala will come down in a few minutes too. Um, she had a dreadful detention."  
  
Well, that proved Harry right, but he wasn't happy with it.  
  
Hermione came and sat in an armchair next to Ron. The first year headed to her dorm.  
  
"Good night, Jane" said Hermione and tried to smile.  
  
"Good night" she responded and left, smiling back happily.  
  
"Who's that?" asked Harry.  
  
"A first year, Jane Chase. She's quite bright, you know. But has a lot of trouble by charming things she's not supposed to. She's Muggle born, maybe that's why" Hermione chuckled. "She levitates Filtwick's desk instead of the feather constantly, I've heard. And once even Flitwick!"  
  
Hermione didn't look too happy as she was saying this.  
  
"Snape's a major git, you won't believe what he's done!"  
  
Ron and Harry stared at each other. Poor Amala.  
  
"I wouldn't say that in front of me" said a shaking voice from the direction of the girl's dorms. "It brought me enough trouble, didn't it? Oh, hello, Harry"  
  
Amala was looking pretty bad. She had red eyes and a hand wrapped in a piece of cloth and Harry remembered with horror his detention last year with Umbridge. No, Snape wouldn't! Would he?...  
  
"So, what happened?" he asked.  
  
She sighed.  
  
"I hope I haven't lost him."  
  
Lost him?! Did she look in the mirror?! No matter what had happened, she should definitely stay away from him.  
  
"He doesn't deserve you!" Hermione said, inviting her to sit down, which she did.  
  
"And, besides, who'd want not to lose the greasy git?" Ron asked, seeming to try to comfort her.  
  
"Me" she answered sadly. "Well, this is what happened."  
  
/*-Flashback-*\  
  
Amala was going down the stairs to the dungeons. She used to like this path, now she feared it. After what Snape heard her say. What would happen?  
  
She got on the last corridor before the class and took a deep breath and opened the door. Snape was inside and he looked at her with the worst glare he had. She wouldn't have feared it, but now she knew she was guilty of treachery and that he would probably want his revenge.  
  
"Well, what are you waiting for?! Come inside!" he snapped. Amala gulped and entered. "I couldn't help overhear your. conversation. Fifty points from Gryffindor. Now, do you see those jars over there? Move all the contents from them to the ones I have here. With your hands."  
  
Amala looked at the jars and gulped again. A few slimy creatures were moving around in the jars and she recognized them. The ugly, worm-like things were good for potions and needed to be added after no more than an hour from their death in potions. That meant that they must have been kept alive.  
  
Beside the fact that they were extremely disgusting, they also shocked with a bit of pain whomever might touch them without any protection. Amala could remember that it was a good remedy for some diseases and that their shocks weren't dangerous, but still.  
  
Snape was glaring at her and she took the non-slimy creature and fresh- watered jars Snape had ready and kneeled between the jars. She took a deep breath and put her hand between the creatures, picking one.  
  
The pain was worse than she thought it would be. She gasped in pain and dropped the slimy thing.  
  
"Afraid of a bit of pain?" asked Snape, looking at her with an evil look.  
  
She stared at him for a few seconds with a bit of fear in her eyes and she grabbed another one again and quickly placed it in one of the other jars. Snape had an evil smile on his face. She redid the process and another creature went into a jar. The pain was getting worse and worse, but she could still stand it.  
  
After a few creatures, Snape came near her.  
  
"Let me show you how it's done" he said and took her hand from a bit upper than the wrist and put it in a jar. The creatures started sending shocks to her and she gasped and tried to pull her hand up, but Snape didn't let go. "Get used to the feeling" he said as she was starting to breath really hard, trying not to scream.  
  
It was worse and worse and she was desperately trying to get her hand freed, but Snape didn't let go.  
  
"Please, please" she begged, but he didn't seem to care.  
  
In a few more seconds, tears started rolling down her cheeks.  
  
"Please!"  
  
She was crying, but he didn't care.  
  
Finally, after two minutes, he let her go and she fell on the floor, crying. The pain in her hand was worse than she ever remembered it to be.  
  
"I see you can't do it tonight, you will continue tomorrow" Snape said and grabbed the upper part of her robe and pulled her up. "Good night"  
  
She didn't realize how she did it, but somehow managed to get out the door, holding on to things, but as soon as she was out of the damned dungeon, she fell on the floor again, seeing only a blur of what was around her, everything moving fast, one shade faster than the others. She started crying like she never had before, hot tears rolling down her cheeks, her hand still hurting.  
  
/*-End Flashback-*\  
  
"Well, that's it" she said. "My hand still hurts, but much less."  
  
"The GIT! How can he do that?" Ron said and Harry nodded. "Hurting you like that!"  
  
"He doesn't deserve you" Hermione added. "Not now, nor ever!"  
  
"But I love him" Amala said and tears started rolling down her cheeks again. "I don't care."  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
The next morning, Amala was still sad, no matter how much the others tried to cheer her up. But when the owl post came, that was forgotten as the Great Hall filled with agitation and nervousness, and even small panic attacks. Harry grabbed the Daily Prophet and started reading.  
  
Death Eaters Attack Town  
  
This night, a large group of Death Eaters have attacked the town of Wick, in northern Britain. There had been twelve dead, five wizards and seven Muggles: Melissa Smith and her husband, Titus Smith, Ronald Opelika, Arthur Laverty, Jacque Michigan, Iris Molder, Jerry Hovers, Molly Scully, Jane Tropes, Diana Richfield and Polly Jius.  
  
The Ministry of Magic has sent Aurors and Obliviators right away, but none of the Death Eaters could be caught.  
  
"They have acted quickly. It was a get-in, get-out attack, to prove their power" says Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt. "A proof that He-Who-Must-Not-Be- Named is back. We ask the magic community to not panic."  
  
"The wizards and Muggles didn't stand a chance" says Auror Nymphadora Tonks. "The Death Eaters came in the town and attacked everybody on the street with various curses, not caring if they were magical or not. The Dark Mark is now hovering over some houses in the town, although nobody in them was killed."  
  
"We are living through dark days" says a wizard who refuses to tell us his name. "Magical or non-magical, we should be careful. And sometimes, if we looked just in front of our noses, we would see the answers to our problems. This war is not just of the wizards, it is a war of the world, spreading like a plague. If we unite, we could win the war. If we insist in spreading apart, the darkness will conquer us. To all out there, I say that there is always hope. Sometimes, our enemies and the ones will fear will become our friends and together we will defeat darkness."  
  
The town of Wick will always be marked by this attack. A horrible deed such as this will most definitely remain in the history of the world, so much more in the history of the town.  
  
The Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge has declared that this reign of terror will end soon. All that is left for us to do is to get prepared and hope for the best.  
  
Harry wondered what exactly the wizard meant. And who was he? Why did he refuse to give his name?  
  
"Silence" boomed Dumbledore's voice. "Please, do not panic! This is a most regretful event, but we must keep calm and see what we can do!"  
  
Everybody quieted as if it were magic.  
  
"Classes will continue as they use to and we will see what will happen next. Please, keep your calm."  
  
Everybody stared at him. He seemed to be twenty years older than he used to.  
  
Harry's attention was attracted, however, by a movement at an end of the table. He turned his head, as did the rest of the Great Hall. Towers stood up.  
  
"I know this must be horrible news to you. But, do you remember what me and Mrs. Rose have taught you? Fear is the worst and most powerful weapon of the Dark. If you give in to your fear, you have already lost. If you do not. Well, then there is always a chance. And even when the worst things happen to you, you will turn out fine. Keep that in mind, young ones and do not give in to fear, for no reason."  
  
Everybody was staring at him. He seemed so calm and powerful, not cheery and joking, not dark. He never used to seem so powerful when he was calm!  
  
"I know that you fear for you and for your loved ones. I know I do. But the difference between losers and winners is that losers will fear and give up, winners will fear and deal with it and fight back. Even the most powerful people fear things, but they don't give up. Never. They acknowledge their fear and think about what has caused it and find ways to deal with it and if they can't, they run. Be winners, not losers!"  
  
"Easy for you to say!" cried Parvati Patil. "You're not in danger, you're a full grown wizard and everything! You probably aren't even afraid!"  
  
He looked at her, sad.  
  
"You're wrong. I'm afraid myself. Not for me, nothing that happens to me can be bad for me. I fear for you and your parents and every goddamned wizard on this planet."  
  
They stared at him. What?!  
  
"Oh, don't pretend you've never heard of me! You have. I know all of you have, but you never brought it up. You never asked, I never told. I will tell you something now. I was not cursed with Sight, but I still feel some things that happen, happened and will happen. And I tell you that a bit before the Green Flame Torch will return to its blessed spot, my body will be dead and my soul will go where it is supposed to."  
  
All the Great Hall was gaping. Including the teachers, and Dumbledore wasn't too far behind.  
  
"But I will be alright, I can deal with that. It is you I worry about. In you stands the future. Now, off to your classes and learn like you never have before. Let fear help you in that, let it be a reason to learn, but turn it into determination. Good luck, young ones."  
  
After a few seconds of complete silence, Towers boomed:  
  
"WELL?! Off to class!"  
  
They all started packing and ran to their classes.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione were standing in the middle of the common room, talking about the day's events.  
  
"And to think of all those lives!" Hermione said, thinking about the murdered men in Wick.  
  
"It's just the beginning, Hermione." whispered Ron. "My dad told me about how it used to be. Chaos, murder. They were trying to hide the wizarding world from the Muggles, but they were dying too. It was horrible. I just hope. I just hope it doesn't happen that way now."  
  
"It won't. It can't! The Order is working now!" Harry said, trying to sound determined.  
  
"It also did last time." Ron reminded him. "I hope we make it all out of it ok."  
  
"You know what bugs me?" Hermione asked.  
  
"No" they answered in unison.  
  
"What Towers said."  
  
"About fear?"  
  
"That too. But, I mean the last part of his speech. He said he would die. Do you think he will?" "I. don't know." Harry answered.  
  
"He seemed so calm about it. Maybe he's some kind of a Trelawney with prophecies on himself" Ron said,  
  
"No, he can't be. And he did give a somewhat exact time of his death" Harry replied.  
  
"Wait!" Hermione cried.  
  
"What?!" the boys asked after seeing she wasn't going to continue after a few seconds.  
  
"The somewhat exact time of his death!"  
  
"What about it?!" Harry said, confused.  
  
"He said something about the Green Flame Torch. He said that he would die before the Green Flame Torch disappears!  
  
"Yeah?" Ron motioned her to continue.  
  
"Well, out of what we know, it hasn't even been found yet! Out of what we know, at least. Why don't we ask one of the Order?"  
  
"Because they would ever tell us!" Ron said. "So what if he mentioned the Green Flame Torch?"  
  
"Maybe. We should try to find it! It's somewhere around Hogwarts, remember?! If they didn't find it, maybe we should!"  
  
"And how do you suppose we'll find it, even if it is nearby?" Harry asked. "It's not like we know how to."  
  
"I'll go look at the library. Ron, you send a letter to one of you brothers and try to squeeze the information out of them. Harry, you should probably train or something."  
  
"How and what for?"  
  
"I don't know how, somehow. And because you're the one who always ends up in messy situations, remember?"  
  
"Oh, yeah"  
  
"I'll go to the library. Tomorrow."  
  
"Ok." Ron started saying. "But what do I do about my broth-"  
  
"Write a letter to. Fred. Or Bill. Someone who wouldn't lie to you. And ask about the Order. Try to get the information."  
  
"Sure" he groaned.  
  
"What are you complaining about?" she asked, having that look of steel in her eyes that McGonagall sometimes had. "I'm the one who'll be researching every bit of the library. But, when you finish, you can help Harry and try things yourself."  
  
She sighed.  
  
"It's gonna be hard. Well, Harry, I think we should go to Towers' lesson, shouldn't we?"  
  
"Yeah" Harry answered. He had nearly forgotten.  
  
She grabbed her wand and they all rushed down the corridors to meet the others.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
The group that had detention with Towers was just about to enter the room. Harry opened the door and gaped at the scene. Towers was standing in the middle of the room, in a weird position and with his eyes closed. It reminded him a lot of that Yoga-thingy. Suddenly, the Professor opened his eyes.  
  
"Riiiight, the detention, I forgot!" he said and got up. "Come in!"  
  
"Um, Professor?" asked Harry. "What were you doing?"  
  
"My Yoga techniques" he answered simply and Harry realized he had been right. "Sometimes, it is good to have something to remind you who you are."  
  
O.K., Harry was puzzled. How can you forget who you are?  
  
"So, it is good to see you again!" he said and grinned. "Well, today it's your choice. What would you like to learn about?"  
  
Weirder and weirder. They should decide what they want to learn? But he was the teacher!  
  
"Well, nobody? Hermione, what would you like to learn?"  
  
The girl looked at him in surprise.  
  
"I don't know. What can I choose from?"  
  
Towers smiled.  
  
"Anything you want."  
  
Well, there was a confusing answer.  
  
"How about ways of fighting dark wizards?"  
  
"Do you have anybody in mind? Oh, never mind that question. Sure. Can any of you tell me what a dark wizard is most afraid of?"  
  
They all stared at each other. Duh, no! Harry guessed that it must have been pretty obvious since Towers looked as if he was trying hard not to laugh.  
  
"Well, suppose you're a very powerful dark wizard and have many enemies and many servants who would just love to be in your spot. You wish to rule the world. What would be your worst fear?"  
  
Again, no answer. At least, so Harry thought.  
  
"I'd be afraid of losing my power" answered Luna.  
  
"Of course" Towers answered. "Afraid to lose your power. It is now what keeps you alive. Your enemies would happily cut off your head, your servants also. There is nobody who you can trust if you don't have power. Or three-four people at most. That's why dark wizards are so cruel. To prove their power. To prove that there is still nothing that can stand in their way. But, you know you can't just lose your power. So, what are you afraid of?"  
  
"Being defeated" answered Neville and Towers smiled.  
  
"Indeed. To be defeated. It means that there is somebody more powerful than you. If you're on different sides, you might still have a chance, but if you're on the same side, you are as good as dead. You'll have to obey the man like a new master, as long as you can't defeat him. But let us say that you're not on the same side. That the man is not your ex-servant. That he is somebody powerful from the light side. Which is your fear then?"  
  
"That he's powerful enough to make you look very bad in front of your servants" answered Ginny.  
  
"Not exactly what I had in mind" Towers replied. "I was thinking of powerful enough to make you lose your power, but I guess that you're correct. If you look bad enough in front of your servants, they won't put their trust in you. You've been badly defeated. Then why even bother to stick to you when you lose anyway? And they get themselves in torture because of you. You don't need to be a genius to realize it's time to leave your master. But what could this great wizard have to defeat you? What power? Because you are great. Very great."  
  
Now they were staring at each other, nobody even guessing the answer.  
  
"A power you cannot fight. Something that does not fight, but you can't stand. Remember that lesson Mrs. Rose taught you with the extreme light people that are light enough to be like human Patronuses? That is what you fear most, even subconsciously. Those you can't fight, you can't even get close to because you know that they have help from everywhere if they need it. And they have a great strength of their own. You feel great pain and that you are losing your dark powers when you even get near one."  
  
"You mean these people can't be defeated?" Harry asked, amazed.  
  
Towers smiled.  
  
"No, they can't. They're so powerful, that darkness can't even stand close to them."  
  
"But then, why don't they just come here and save us from Voldemort?" Hermione asked.  
  
"For the same reason that my Master doesn't want to come here and fight in the war. For the same reason why wizards don't interfere with Muggle wars. It is because it wouldn't be fair and if you did it, you might end up with greater enemies than you. Ok, imagine that there was a world war three and Dumbledore decided to interfere. Well, then Voldemort would also interfere, trying to keep Dumbledore from achieving his goal. Muggles would be forgotten as the wizards would join in the war and fight with everything they got. Muggles wouldn't stand a chance. Then, somebody white superior to wizards would see the chaos and deaths and decide it can't go on. And then he or she would interfere and his or her enemy would also strike and they would drag their family, friends, relatives and finally everybody on their side in the war. And then there would be even greater chaos and Muggles would lose, no matter what, and wizards would start to lose control. And so on it would go until the greatest levels of power, the smaller the power of the circle, the more damage done to it. Voldemort's plans would succeed, there would be no more Muggles, but there probably would hardly be any wizards either. Do you understand what I'm saying?"  
  
They nodded.  
  
/*-/*-/*-  
  
Detention was over, Towers had let them go a bit early. Or at least, that was what Harry thought before he saw Draco Malfoy rushing down the corridor.  
  
"Malfoy!" he said.  
  
"Potter and his little freaky friends" he answered. "Weren't you supposed to be in bed by now?"  
  
Harry growled.  
  
"Ha, ha, we're laughing to death" said Ron.  
  
"Nobody asked you, weasel. And what are you doing here anyway? Holding Potty's hand, so he wouldn't be afraid?"  
  
"Well, Harry isn't the one who almost pissed on himself on Towers' first class" Hermione said.  
  
"Shut up, Mudblood"  
  
"Listen here, Malfoy" Neville said in a very sure voice, making the rest look at him in surprise. "You're outnumbered. So, you better shut up if you don't want to get your arse kicked."  
  
"Oooh, I'm so frightened" Draco said, although looking a bit less sure of himself. "And what are you going to do, hit me with one of your famous hexes? Trip yourself to me and then try to hit?"  
  
"Shut up, Malfoy, he's right" Ron said.  
  
"Oooh, I'm so frightened!" Draco said, trying to sound sure of himself, but doing the math. Not good for him.  
  
"Why don't you go to your detention now?" Neville asked.  
  
"Maybe one of your best suggestions, Longbottom. Well, I'll be going now. And watch out, Potter, you don't want to stay up over your bedtime!"  
  
He left, not looking back. Harry, as well as all the others were now looking at Neville.  
  
"Wow, you sure are sure of yourself. It's great to see you like this, Neville!" Ginny said, grinning at him like a maniac.  
  
"Yeah, well, I decided to take Towers' advice and deal with my problems." He said, reddening a bit.  
  
"Wicked!" Ron said.  
  
"As much as I hate to admit it", Hermione said, still grinning, "Malfoy is right. We should be going back to our dorms before we are late and Filch catches us."  
  
"Darn!" Ron replied and they all went towards the dorms.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Well, that's it folks! A new chapter, finally on Fanfiction.net. You're probably wondering what the hell took me so long. A few things, actually. One of them would be the fact that school started. Another would be that I'm working on other parts of the story. Another is that instead of writing I did a lot of reading. And another would be that my mum forgot to pay the phone bill and I ended up phone less and net less. *groan*.  
  
The next chapter will come up sooner -I hope- and. Have you seen the movie Lord of the Rings? Remember a part at the beginning when it said "A lot of things that should not have been forgotten were lost... History became legend. Legend became myth." Remember the words... "A lot of things that should not have been forgotten."  
  
Oh, and I'm not going dark. I really ain't, even if this chapter might seem to prove the contrary.  
  
Well, moving on from my little note -which I hope will keep you curious- and moving on to the reviews!  
  
Thank you all who have reviewed!!! It is my greatest pleasure to read your notes. The longer and more, the better! So, if you like me or my story the least bit, review! Flames with reason are welcomed.  
  
Thanks to:  
  
Naomie: Thank you, thank you *bows*  
  
BABYJAYY: Thank you and. um. what do you consider soon?  
  
Bogdan ag: Thanks and I've no clue yet. Many.  
  
Lauren: Thanks! Here's more!  
  
Bleeding-sword: Thanks. Heh, heh *embarrassed* You know, I'm not veeeery good at English. Could you please re-ask the last question, please? I'm afraid I couldn't quite understand it. My bad English, no hard feelings!  
  
The Red Dragons Order: Please, don't panic! And the snow's gone and school is snowing me with homework and mum forgot to pay the phone bill -as said above- and no you said nothing wrong and said story pips back and I'm starting to lose my whatever you may call it when you write breath and you said nothing wrong and it's not you and it's me and my blasted connection and, whoa, this is a great punctuation less sentence! So, I'm baaaaaack! 


	15. Snaeritaserum and Returns

Disclaimer: I don't own too much, just Jack Towers, Amala Wright, the plot and a few other stuff which you can't find in J.K' s series. Oh, and the songs belong to Luca Turilli. He's a great metal singer. And there's a small part from Cher.  
  
Author's Note: Whoa! Well, I can't believe it turned out this long. Yeah, I expected it to be a bit longer, but it's about three times longer than I imagined it would be. Well, have fun reading!  
  
Chapter 15 Snaeritaserum and Returns  
  
"I can't believe what I've seen there In the fantasy world of mystery Many warriors and Kings Golden Swords of Steel, All united for victory!"  
  
"Um, Professor?" Harry asked, staring at Towers who was humming in front of the class. "What are we supposed to do today?"  
  
Malfoy was snickering, but not too much, since he still didn't dare say anything ever since the first incident with Towers.  
  
The Professor looked at his class, checking on every face, every person.  
  
"Today - we discuss."  
  
The class was looking odd at him.  
  
"Discuss?!" Ron asked, amazed. "'Bout what?"  
  
"Well, I've done some thinking since the attack. Maybe knowing hexes and creatures is not enough. It never was enough, either, but still. Now we need to talk more than ever. "  
  
"But talk?! As in chat?" Ron asked.  
  
"No. Or maybe yes. I've been doing some research lately - keep your ears opened, Mr. Malfoy, you might want to send this information to your father - and I've come to several conclusions."  
  
Draco reddened. Yep, Towers knew them all.  
  
"First: there are some of you who might want to join Death Eaters."  
  
There were some gasps through the classroom.  
  
"And I will not interfere with you decisions."  
  
The gasps and gaps seemed to be the only thing students could do.  
  
"What do you mean, you won't interfere?" Harry asked, startled.  
  
Towers gazed at him.  
  
"Of course I won't Harry. What do you take me for? There is no way in which I can take decisions for any of you. It is not my meaning to judge. It is my duty, however, to tell you exactly what happens if you do it."  
  
A few Slytherins rolled their eyes.  
  
"At first you will get power and protection from your Lord. He will be. um. how can I put this? Friendly."  
  
Harry looked at him, gaping. Voldemort, friendly?  
  
"Well, not friendly as in 'let's be pals', the teacher continued, seeming to read his mind, but friendly as in 'join me and I'll give you anything you ever wanted'. Don't fall for it. It's not gonna happen. He won't offer the world to you on a silver platter. He will, however, give you money, power, whatever might make you feel good, and protect you within his ranks."  
  
'How nice of him!' Harry thought.  
  
"Then, he'll ask you to do things. Steal, torture, kill. It all comes with a price. And once you're in, you can't get out. Ever. If you do, they will haunt you and try to get you. By 'they' I mean the Death Eaters. They will never be your friends. And one more thing. If you are faithful and do your best to comply his little task, but fail, he will still torture you."  
  
Harry looked around the classroom, seeing Draco a bit paler than usual.  
  
"But if you comply his tasks, he will reward you. But don't think that he will be good with you even if you do the worst things he asks you to do and then fail with one. And God bless you if you're not up to his expectations."  
  
Towers started pacing through the classroom, looking in a distant land and seeming to be lost in his thoughts.  
  
"Even the shadows were crying All was so sad on that tragic day  
Their love was marred by one stupid war  
  
And their holy flame will not burn anymore  
  
But something seems to be not right  
  
His cosmic heart wants to pound yet  
  
His soul is so full of love for his queen  
  
And rage for the triumph of that bloody king  
  
He'd like to change all that happened  
  
The story so bad was written  
  
He called the essence of cosmos itself  
  
The stars in the end made a wonderful spell."  
  
Harry stared at the singing Professor.  
  
"Um, Professor, what are you singing?" he asked.  
  
Towers didn't look at him and Harry was seriously considering asking again after about half a minute, when Towers answered.  
  
"A song that a friend of mine sometimes sings. Tell me, if you have listened to it, which are the main feelings 'he' has in the song and what this is about."  
  
Hermione raised her hand -not a surprise- and so did Ron. But the boy didn't wait to be asked to respond.  
  
"He loves somebody" Ron answered.  
  
Towers smiled, still not looking at anybody.  
  
"Yes, he does. What else?"  
  
"Um. I don't know?" Ron answered.  
  
"Good. Sit down. Hermione?"  
  
"He's almost dead, but then he wakes up."  
  
Towers stopped looking into space and looked at her instead,  
  
"Yes, true. Is that all?"  
  
"And there is something about a spell."  
  
"Indeed" the Professor responded and leaned against his desk. Harry noted how weird it was for a teacher to do that. "Well, it's about a wizard who is nearly killed in a battle against a king. The wizard's queen was badly hurt, nearly dead. And then, he felt rage for everything that happened and decided to have his revenge and save his queen. But in order to do that, he must go to the cores of magic itself and ask planets and stars to help. Can any of you tell me which is the greatest law, if you may call it so, in the Bible?"  
  
Harry looked at him oddly. What did the Bible have to do with all this?  
  
"Thou shall not kill" Lavender answered.  
  
"Many people think so" Towers replied. "But it is a wrong concept. The real answer is a one-worded one. 'Love'".  
  
Harry remembered how his mother had died to save him -her love had saved him.  
  
"Love is the greatest law. Some saint -I can't quite recall who- said 'Love and do what you will'. It is because when you love, you can't go wrong. When you truly love, all is possible and you can't hurt anyone. If you love, than you can even do real magic, not what you're doing here."  
  
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked. "Isn't this magic?"  
  
"Of course it is" Towers answered and smiled at her. "But it is not all that is possible. What is the essence of what you learned to do? Move objects -levitate, summon, all these-, create different feelings to people -cheering charms, pain curses, like Cruciatus-, transfigure objects -desks into pigs, like Mrs. McGonagall enjoys doing, Animagus training-, disarming charms -basically in the 'move objects' category-, repelling creatures and charms and other things, time charms, healing charms and the killing charm. Did I miss anything?"  
  
Nobody considered he did. In fact, neither did Harry. It sounded like so little when he said it like that. But what else was there to do?  
  
"But do you know a charm which can make people genuinely happy? One that brings back people from the dead? One that makes people see the truth? One that can create a batter world? One that can make Voldemort STOP BEING SUCH A BLOODY IDIOT?!"  
  
Harry pushed himself at the back of the desk, away from Towers who boomed his last words. He heard a lot of gasps and even a small scream in his back, but since he was in the front desk, he couldn't see this behind him.  
  
"Of course not" Towers continued, as if nothing had happened, "Nobody does. But I tell you that it is possible to do all this. It really is. You can even melt a rock hart."  
  
Harry thought about Amala, sitting in his back. She did melt a rock hart and she did save Sirius from death.  
  
"Death can't be conquered, but it can be persuaded not to take some people. People can be happy because of your magic. People can see the truth."  
  
He smiled at them.  
  
"It can all happen because of our hearts. Love can make it all happen. If you love -and I don't mean couple-love, I mean as in love everybody-and- everything-love-then you can save your beloved from death and you can do anything."  
  
The bell rang and Towers jerked his head up.  
  
"Is that the time? Gods, I didn't see it. We'll continue next time."  
  
They all started getting up.  
  
"And I want three foot-essays about what spells you would like to be able to do, but aren't possible of doing and about couples you know that are more powerful together and love-songs you like. Muggle or wizard, it doesn't matter, I know most of them."  
  
They all sighed and went out the door.  
  
"Do you think he's gone crazy?" Ron asked. "Spells, couples and love songs?"  
  
Hermione looked at him and answered, looking a bit concerned.  
  
"Well, I never thought I would say this, but it seems so. Maybe he's lovesick and found out about Snape."  
  
"What about Snape?" Lavender asked. Harry stared at her in shock. He hadn't realized she was there.  
  
"You don't know?!" Amala asked, popping out of nowhere, making Harry gap at her. Luckily, Lavender didn't notice, staring too intense at Amala. "Snape is in this school now because of a woman. She loved him and he loved her."  
  
"Snape in love? Ugh" Lavender replied.  
  
"But she was killed before the fall of You-Know-Who and he, heartbroken, decided he would come here and quit his job as a spy for Dumbledore, becoming a teacher."  
  
"And what does this have to do with Towers?" Lavender asked, looking at her weird.  
  
"Well, she seems to have been with another woman, who was also killed. Recently. Snape's story must have remembered him of her."  
  
"Who was Snape's girlfriend?" Lavender asked.  
  
"Lily Rumens. And Towers. well, it's said that Monica Kane was his girlfriend. He did use to visit her at odd times, you know what I mean?"  
  
Lavender's eyes widened.  
  
"Ooh."  
  
"And then he was held responsible for her. Maybe now he's charged or something."  
  
"Gods! Had no idea!"  
  
"Yeah, so that's why he was melancholically or something, you know. Or, you know him, sometimes he's just plain weird and that might be his reasoning."  
  
A chuckle which soon developed into a roar of laughter sounded behind them and Harry turned to see what was going on. Towers was laughing with every bit of his being.  
  
"How nice of you -chuckle- to call me weird, Mrs. Wright. -chuckle-. I do believe that --- this has happened before, right? You do have some bad luck. First, Snape, now me, who knows who'll be hearing you!"  
  
Amala was as red as a tomato.  
  
"Oh, don't worry, I've heard worse." The amused Professor said. "Towers is the freak whose loyalties lie only with himself, the psycho dude, etcetera. And nice story about me carrying on with Mrs. Kane."  
  
Amala was horror stricken, Harry could easily see that.  
  
"Very nice, indeed. And Snape, a girlfriend?! No way, his reasoning was completely different. Gosh golly, where do they get rumors from today?"  
  
Harry looked at Towers, who still had tears of laughter in his eyes.  
  
"Well, it's great to see what students' imagination can create, but I really have to go, a staff meeting and all. But, Mrs. Wright, maybe you could tell me some other time about these gossips, eh? I like them more and more each year."  
  
Towers went through them, still chuckling.  
  
"Well, there goes the 'had a girlfriend and is now sad' theory." Hermione concluded.  
  
"And you -you're lucky he didn't say anything about you calling him weird" Ron said towards Amala.  
  
"Definitely" she answered.  
  
They left together towards the Great Hall, Harry having the weird feeling that Towers somehow knew more things than he let on to know. They walked down the corridors, talking happily and made it to lunch.  
  
"Mmm, it smells wonderful" Ron said and Hermione and Amala chuckled.  
  
"You're always hungry" Hermione said.  
  
"Of course, I have to survive these days, right?"  
  
They sat at the table, Neville somewhere close to them.  
  
"Hello, guys" Ginny said from somewhere across the table.  
  
"Hello" they replied and sat. Harry took some mashed potatoes and steaks in his plate and started eating. After a while, he noticed that Amala was talking. He'd been to hungry before to see it. Now, what was the topic?  
  
"The thing is" Amala continued some previously started conversation, "that dragons are quite awful sometimes. Really. My mum and dad had some rather nasty burns before we left home."  
  
"Yeah, tell me about it?" Ron asked. "Charlie was all burned up when I last saw him. And yet he said that he'd rather not do anything else. Said something about loving them."  
  
"You can't not love them" Amala said. "Not after you've been near them and befriended them. Not after you've felt their power, their."  
  
"Fire, powerful fire" somebody behind Harry said and he turned, seeing somebody whom he did not expect to see at all.  
  
"Malfoy!"  
  
"Potter"  
  
The blonde Slytherin was looking at them superiorly.  
  
"And that's what dragons have, Wright, fire. They are lords of fire and chaos and mayhem. No wonder Muggles thought they were all evil."  
  
Amala returned his look.  
  
"And their fire is also symbolical. It is a transformation, the fire that purifies everything. But what are you doing here, Blonde Dragon?" she asked ironically.  
  
It took Harry a good deal of time before he realized that the Slytherin's first name was Draco which of course meant Dragon. Draco looked at her, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Just telling you that Professor McGonagall wants to see you. Something about your Gryffindor problems. What's this, Wright, got in trouble with your housemates?"  
  
"Oh, shut up" she said and got up and started walking towards the doors, through which McGonagall had already passed.  
  
Harry noted how weird it was that Draco, of all people, would deliver the message, but tucked back into his food.  
  
"Ron, will you stop eating as if you wouldn't have had any food for months?" he heard Hermione's voice.  
  
"Bu'mione'mangry"  
  
"What?" she asked.  
  
"But Hermione, I'm hungry" he complained after swallowing.  
  
"Yeah, I can see that" she said and sighed. "But still, a bit of auto control never killed anybody."  
  
Harry chuckled in his plate.  
  
"You're incorrigible!" she said, seeing the boy still eat the same. "So, Harry, what do you make of Towers?"  
  
"He's weird, as Amala said" he answered. "Quite weird. Does any of you know how he ended up at Hogwarts?"  
  
The Gryffindors around shrugged.  
  
"No clue" Neville said. "None at all. He just popped up in class, you know?"  
  
"Yeah, we never found out why he just came here." Dean replied.  
  
"And there's this news about him in the press and some things people suspect he did. I don't know what to make of it" Ginny said and Harry raised his head, surprised. He hadn't noticed her around.  
  
"He's blamed for Monica Kane" Neville said. "I really wonder."  
  
"What about his Master?" Hermione asked. "He always seems to be talking about him. Weird"  
  
"More than weird" Harry said. "And he didn't tell us of how awful and what a bad decision it would be to join the Death Eaters."  
  
"But he did make a few points, you know?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Yeah. And remember, Amala said she's send him before."  
  
"When?" Ron asked and Hermione rolled her eyes.  
  
"When she had that veil experience"  
  
"Oh"  
  
"What 'veil experience'?" Dean asked.  
  
Hermione looked at him and made up her mind quickly.  
  
"She passed through some weird veil and got to a room she shouldn't have gotten in and then he came around. It was something she did a while ago."  
  
Harry was surprised. Basically, Hermione wasn't lying. But she didn't tell the truth either.  
  
"Ooh, something to do with her old school?" Seamus asked.  
  
"Something like that."  
  
"So, what did she say about him?" Harry asked, trying to get the talk back to Towers.  
  
"That he seemed weird and didn't say anything about her breaking rules or anything."  
  
Ah, yes, back to Towers.  
  
"Well, he seems like that now" Harry added.  
  
"Wow, look, we better go, the next class comes soon" Hermione said.  
  
"Yeah, let's go" Harry agreed.  
  
They took their things and went to their other class.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Harry was sitting on an armchair near the fire that evening. He didn't have detention with Towers until Sunday. Well, he still called it 'detention', although it was more like private Defence lessons. Amala had gone to Snape's detention and Harry was feeling quite sorry for her.  
  
Hermione took her books and sat near him.  
  
"How are you, Harry? You look tired." She said.  
  
"Yeah, I am a bit. You know, we have our first Quiddich match on Saturday."  
  
"Of course I know, Harry. Against Hufflepuffs, right?"  
  
"Yeah. I'll be competing against Cho."  
  
Hermione sighed and asked:  
  
"Do you still like her, Harry?"  
  
"Um, no, it's nothing like that, I just feel weird."  
  
She looked at him sympathetically.  
  
"Don't worry, you'll be fine."  
  
"Thanks, Hermione. Where's Ron?  
  
She looked at him, a bit amazed.  
  
"Ron? I. don't know. Why?"  
  
"We better make our homework for Charms. We don't really have any homework for tomorrow, but then again, we have the match on Saturday and Angelina decided we should switch the practice day. And on Saturday we have the match and on Sunday I don't know how much time we'll have left."  
  
"I'll go look for him."  
  
"Will you? Thanks. Oh, and did you do your homework?"  
  
"No, not yet, but I don't have any Quiddich practice tomorrow. And I'll be knitting a few clothes for elves."  
  
Harry jerked his head up in surprise.  
  
"You still do that?!"  
  
"Of course I do, Harry! I want all those elves to be free, don't I?"  
  
Hermione looked proud of herself.  
  
"But I haven't seen you do it this year."  
  
Hermione sighed.  
  
"Well, people didn't really feel good about that and I decided to be a bit more secretive about it."  
  
"Yeah, it's a good point", Harry agreed. "Well, have fun knitting!"  
  
"Thanks" she said, smiling widely.  
  
He leaned on his armchair and stared at the fire. Poor Amala, having to go face an angry, blood-thirsty Snape!  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Severus Snape was sitting in the teacher's room right after his last class, alone. Today, he'd have detention with the awfully annoying girl and, to tell the truth, he didn't look forward to it. He wanted his revenge, but he'd rather not see her at all.  
  
Suddenly, the door opened and he jerked his head up from the pile of test papers he was grading.  
  
"Hello, Minerva" he said to the Transfiguration teacher.  
  
"Good to see you, Severus" she answered. "How are you?"  
  
Severus raised an inner eyebrow. Was that why she came? To chat?!  
  
"Fine, you?"  
  
Well, he might be polite, while he was at it, right?  
  
"Also. Listen, Severus, I want to talk to you about something."  
  
This time, he actually raised a physical eyebrow.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"I couldn't help but hear" McGonagall said, looking a bit uncomfortable "about the girl who blew up your classroom."  
  
"Stupid girl." He replied, pretending to go back to his paper grading. "Can't remember a few instructions. I told her not to put the."  
  
McGonagall saw it coming and quickly interfered.  
  
"Um, yes, well, I never knew too much of Potions, Severus, so please, let's skip technical details, shall we?"  
  
Snape opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it. He might have taken about fifty points from the student who said it, but he didn't want to say anything nasty to McGonagall before she told him what this was about.  
  
"Fine" he said and the other Professor sighed with relief.  
  
"Well, I was out in my cat form yesterday, patrolling the corridors."  
  
Severus raised an eyebrow. And this concerned him-why?  
  
"And I made it in front of your own classroom."  
  
Well, this was starting to get interesting.  
  
"There was a girl, crying on the floor, seeing nothing around her and clutching her right hand. She was saying something between sobs, Severus. Something about a stupid mistake and about losing something. Or someone."  
  
Severus looked at her with an impassible face, but his interior didn't feel so cold. So, the girl had been crying over him, eh?! Well, her problem! And now his, since McGonagall came to see him. Speaking of McGonagall, she sighed and tried to smile.  
  
"What did you do to her, Severus? She was totally wrecked. More on the inside, I'd say. And there is something you might not know. She likes you, Severus. As a man, not only a person."  
  
Hell he didn't know! Of course he did! She had made it obvious when she had kissed him on her second detention. Even a blind man could see!  
  
"What makes you think that, Minerva?" he asked, trying to sound as cold as usual.  
  
"I heard her say so. And she was honest about it. I could see it in her eyes."  
  
"She told you?" Severus said, raising an eyebrow. He seemed to be doing that a lot lately.  
  
"Oh, no" she said, chuckling. "Students never do that to elder people. But I heard her say so to Potter, Weasley and Granger."  
  
Severus felt a bit enraged. She told them. How could she do that?! Now, it was probably all over the school! And, gah, what a mistake to accept her! Probably everybody was making fun of him now!  
  
"Really?!" he asked, as cool as usual.  
  
"Yes, and they already knew about it. I didn't stick around to hear more, though; I had a class to teach. You have to admit that she was brave doing that, you're not exactly what I'd call their greatest friend."  
  
Snape was considering glaring evilly at McGonagall. Instead, he didn't.  
  
"So, what are you saying?"  
  
"That you should try to. be nice to her. I'm not saying you should go right ahead and kiss her or anything."  
  
Snape had a bit of a problem. That was exactly what he'd done.  
  
".but you could consider not torturing her, you know"  
  
The woman knew him too well. He smiled in an evil way and said:  
  
"I'll try. But I make no promises. And thank you for telling me this."  
  
McGonagall stared at him speechless.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Amala was heading towards the dungeons. She had been walking around the castle for a loooong while, trying to gather herself. Now, she was near the classroom. There, one more corridor. here she was. bang, bang, you shot me down. bang, bang and I hit the ground. She shook her head. She didn't want songs in her head right now. Especially not this one. Too much of a resemblance with what had happened. Gah, what a time to have Cher in your head.  
  
She made it to the door and knocked, then opened it. Snape stood at his desk.  
  
"Hello, Professor" she said, looking down.  
  
"Hello" he answered. "Come here."  
  
She obeyed and sat down at the chair in front of his desk.  
  
"Do you know what this is?" Severus asked, taking out a vial.  
  
Amala looked at it. It could be many things, actually. How could she know?  
  
"No, sir"  
  
"It's a vial of Veritaserum" he said and she dared, for the first time, to look him in the eyes. Was he going to tell her to drink it? Probably. In fact, why would he have it if not for that? "Would you drink it and then answer my questions?"  
  
She looked at him. Should she? She definitely didn't want him to know some things about her. What if he asked? Oh, boy. She didn't want him to know all her secrets. But, then again, it hadn't been a question. It was an order. She made up her mind.  
  
"I will" she answered.  
  
Severus took a glass of water and put two drops of the potion inside and handed her the glass. She smiled and raised her glass.  
  
"To you!" she tried to joke and drank it. It was a weird feeling.  
  
"So, have you told Mr. Potter and his little gang every detail of what has happened here?"  
  
Amala gulped.  
  
"Not every detail. Almost." Her mouth added. Shit.  
  
"And did you have fun with it?" he asked.  
  
Oh, great! He had to put it that way, didn't he?! GREAT!!!  
  
"Yes" she answered and then added on her own: "It was great to see their faces. Funny" she added. The truth he asked for, the truth it would be.  
  
Severus raised an eyebrow.  
  
"How many people know about your detention?"  
  
"The whole school" Amala answered. Why did he have to ask stupid questions??? Duh, everybody knew she had detention and no matter how hard she tried to answer Severus' real question, her mouth kept answering the question that was exactly put.  
  
"You told EVERYBODY?!" Snape snapped.  
  
"No. You should ask more specific questions, you know" she said, looking at his angry face. "Everybody knows I have detention. It circled the school."  
  
It was a good thing he hadn't give her too much of the potion and she was able to say other things except the answers to his question.  
  
"Oh" Severus said. Oops. He asked a dumb question. "How many people know what happened during detentions? Between you and me" he spat, not really wanting to say that.  
  
"Five, including you and me" she answered.  
  
"And do the four of you have fun at my expense?"  
  
Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.  
  
"Yes" she answered, against their will.  
  
Severus glared dangerously at her.  
  
"What part?"  
  
Oh, please, please, please don't! Don't ask this!  
  
"You having greasy hair and always snapping at everybody and everything" she answered, quietly.  
  
"How about my memory from the Pensieve?"  
  
"What memory?" Amala asked truthfully.  
  
"The one Potter knows about"  
  
"He didn't tell us a thing" Amala answered, looking curiously at Snape. "Well, not me at least."  
  
Severus didn't show it, but he was in shock. Potter hated him and he hadn't even told his friends about the Pensieve? His father would have. His father would have told the whole school. And yet, Potter junior hadn't even told his close friends. At least, not the new one in the group. Why?  
  
"Forward. What do you think of me?"  
  
She tried to keep her mouth shut. But, noooo! He had to ask that, didn't he? He had to ask that! And now, great, her mouth was going to say everything!!!  
  
"I think you're a greasy-haired git sometimes", she answered. Not good. Not good. "And I think you're very smart and a wonderful Potions Master and that something could melt your heart". She wanted to cry. That was not meant for him to hear. Definitely not. Yeah, the part about smart and good Potions Master would do, but the rest?! "And I think that you're so cold because you were a spy" Did she? Obviously, she did. "And I think you're brave to do that and I think you're actually a good person. And I think you kiss wonderfully." That had to come out, right? "And I think that you're right to do this to me" Wow, she thought a lot of things. Maybe she should take Veritaserum more often, get to know what she thought of certain things! "But I also think that you don't know the context of why I said that. And I think you could wash your hair more often" Personal hygiene. Great to be brought up. "And I think you could be a wonderful person, if you wanted to, but now you're building security walls to protect you"  
  
Snape was staring at her, not bothering to hide his amazement any more. He had almost made a face about her considering him 'a greasy haired git', but then cheered up when he heard about the smart thing. Of course, the 'something could melt your heart' thing he hadn't been too pleased. Well, she was wrong about the 'being cold because you were a spy' part. He had been cold even before. It was him. He goggled his eyes at the 'kiss wonderfully part', happy that she looked down. And he was surprised at 'you're right to do this to me' part. And he glared at 'wash your hair more often'. He did wash it often, but it was because of those blasted potions why it was greasy! And he looked at her incredulously at 'could be a wonderful person'. He shook his head and took a glass of water, to drink from it. Meanwhile, she continued.  
  
"And I think you're very nasty to students, even when it's not necessary"  
  
She was correct.  
  
"And I think you have something against Harry"  
  
Was she right! He took another sip of the water.  
  
"And, judging by the way you kiss, I think you would be great in bed"  
  
He suddenly spat the water and chocked, also pouring some of the water in the glass on himself. He coughed, putting the glass with the remaining water down.  
  
"WHAT did you just say?!"  
  
She looked horrified, but answered.  
  
"Judging by the way you kiss, I think you would be great in bed" she repeated, horror stricken.  
  
"Stop. Don't say anything more until I ask you to" he said. Wow. unexpected. very unexpected. he took his wand and cleaned up the mess on himself and the floor. She still looked horror-stricken. He recovered quite quickly and decided not to comment on the last statement. No matter how completely weird it was. Wow, somebody thought he might be a good. No, wait, don't think of that! "You said something about the context of the statement I've heard. What about it?" he asked, deciding to take something neutral.  
  
She sighed in relief.  
  
"Well, Harry, Ron and Hermione were with me and I was telling them about us the day before. I said that I'd like you to stop glaring at me."  
  
She wished him to stop glaring at her?! Well, that made sense.  
  
"And Ron started joking and said that you were a block of ice and Hermione tried to cheer me up and Ron also tried, in his own way, and they wanted to make me laugh and I went with it and thought of the bad things I could say about you and put them in one statement. But I meant no disrespect and I didn't know you were behind me or I wouldn't have said it."  
  
So, they were joking! Just. joking.  
  
"Do you love me?" he asked quietly, before he could stop himself.  
  
She looked in his eyes.  
  
"Yes."  
  
Surprisingly, she didn't seem too bothered to say this. She looked at him honestly, not nervously as she did before. Snape felt very weird.  
  
"Are you mad with me?"  
  
"A little"  
  
He was right about to ask her 'can you forgive me?' but then changed his mind. He'd be damned if he ever said that! Instead, he considered it was all over and she should go to bed.  
  
"Thank you. The potion will last for one more hour, the most. Now, off to bed!"  
  
She nodded and left.  
  
He remained alone in his classroom. Great! Just perfect! Couldn't have been better! He had just hurt and put under Veritaserum the only student in the school who loved him and she was mad at him and - why the hell did he care?!  
  
He went to his personal office after locking the door to the classroom and then from there he opened his all-faithful passage to his dorm. The dorm had three secret passages leading to and from it and one door. The door was opening toward a corridor in the dungeon, a secret passage went to his office, another one went to some upper level and the third he hadn't explored totally, there were still some secret passages in even that one.  
  
Surprisingly, he didn't feel insecure in the dorm. He felt quite safe. Nobody knew the passages. He collapsed on the bed, putting down the vial of dreamless potion he had brought with him. He had a feeling that otherwise he wouldn't sleep too much. He got dressed in his night robes and grabbed the vial and drank it from one gulp.  
  
His eyes suddenly looked horrified towards the vial and he dropped it on the stone floor. A feeling of panic went through his body and soon a desperate cry went through the castle.  
  
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooo!"  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Dumbledore was in his office, preparing to call it a night and go to bed, when, all of a sudden, a desperate Snape burst in through the door. Well, there was something weird. You don't see desperate Snapes all the time, do you?  
  
"Severus, anything I could help you with?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
"Yes, there is something! I can't teach tomorrow, Albus! I really can't! It's not possible."  
  
Dumbledore looked at him amazed.  
  
"Why? Is there something wrong? Perhaps you are sick? Oh, my, I should get you to Poppy."  
  
Snape glared at him and responded quickly.  
  
"It's not like that, you old mage! It really isn't! You've got it wrong."  
  
Dumbledore did a double-take. Usually, Snape was calm and cool.  
  
"I drank a whole vial of VERITASERUM, Albus! And you know what effect it has on me, don't you?"  
  
Dumbledore chuckled. Of course he knew. Most of the people would just start coughing up their secrets at that amount of the potion, but Severus was one of the select few who could keep control of themselves. Unless somebody asked him a question.  
  
"Oh, dear. How much do you reckon you will be under the effect of the potion?"  
  
"Maybe 3 or 4 days. Better get me a replacement, I wouldn't want anybody asking me anything, since I will answer anything they ask!"  
  
Ooh, too tempting.  
  
"What if I told you I can't do this?!"  
  
Snape paled.  
  
"Then I would tell you that I can't go to class, then you'd probably tell me I must and until the end you'd probably win over me and I'd go to class tomorrow and somebody would ask me a question and I would start answering whatever he said and I'd probably spit out my secrets and then I'd be back here in a moment and there would be two possibilities: one you're here and I yell and curse and mean it and you'd probably listen calm two: you're not here and go back to my dorm and do a lot of cursing and then when I find you I'd jump to your neck."  
  
"Enough, Severus" Dumbledore said, a twinkle in his eyes. "You're under Veritaserum, alright. I'll take care of your classes somehow and your detentions also. You just lie down. You might need it."  
  
Snape nodded and bowed.  
  
"Thank you sir."  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Amala was jumping around the school, nearly singing "he forgave me!" Because, of course, Snape hadn't been a bloody idiot and not seen that she was sorry. Actually he was quite intelligent and maybe. maybe she still had a chance!  
  
And then she saw the most horrible thing she could have seen: Argus Filch. She paled and checked her watch. Oh, boy, she was late!  
  
"Well, well, what are we doing here? And so happy!" he sneered. "Had a meeting with."  
  
Amala widened her eyes! Oh, no, she was still under Veritaserum and she couldn't lie! Shit. Well, better stop him now, before he says something she might not want to answer.  
  
"I had a detention with Professor Snape!" she said urgently. "And I was returning to my dorm."  
  
He raised an eyebrow.  
  
"I have never seen students coming happy from detentions before" he said.  
  
"Well, it is the truth" she replied.  
  
"How would I know?" he asked. Maybe you're just a lying little freak, as all the others!"  
  
Not good.  
  
"I'm under a potion, sir." she replied. Whew! The potion was wearing off! Now, she still couldn't lie, but she could leave some parts out, it wasn't like before when her mouth spoke for her.  
  
"Aha" Filch said and looked at her weirdly. "There are cheering potions?"  
  
She blessed the fact that he didn't ask her whether or not she was under a cheering potion. She had the feeling it wouldn't have been good for her if he knew she was under Veritaserum.  
  
"Of course, sir" she replied.  
  
"Are you sure you've been in detention until now?"  
  
"Yes, sir. You can ask Professor Snape if you like."  
  
Filch was glaring.  
  
"I think I will. Off to bed."  
  
She smiled broadly and left for the tower. Well, that was luck!  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Harry was reading one of his letters that just came and Ron and Hermione were looking over his shoulders.  
  
Dear Harry,  
  
I'm so glad I can finally write to you! It's been a while, I know, but it hasn't been safe to do so.  
  
I think that the Jack guy finally has something that could clear me. He popped up -literally- here yesterday, saying that he had proof that I'm innocent and that although it might take a while, I should be cleared relatively soon. I wonder what he has.  
  
So, that means that we'll meet again, eh, kiddo? Can't wait to see what's been going on since I've been gone. And I know I asked you before. Would you like to come stay with me once I'm cleared? Molly said they finally managed to get my mum off the wall, so no more screeches in the middle of the night!  
  
And I've heard Buckbeak is doing great. Hope you're ok, Harry and see you soon! I miss you.  
  
And say hi to Ron and Hermione for me, will you? And don't you dare forget Amala! I have a lot to thank her for!  
  
See you soon,  
  
Snuffles  
  
Hermione was jumping up and down the walls.  
  
"Finally!" she was crying.  
  
Ron and Harry were grinning widely at each other.  
  
"Sirius is gonna be alright!" Harry said.  
  
"Yeah, mate, ain't it wonderful? Hermione, stop, or you'll make me really dizzy!" Ron added.  
  
"And speaking of Amala, where is she?" Harry asked. "Shouldn't she have been back yet?"  
  
"Probably" Hermione answered. "Oh, Harry, he'll be ok."  
  
At the moment, as if on cue, Amala entered through the portrait, nearly dancing around. Harry noticed the other Gryffindors staring weirdly at all of them, including Amala, whom everybody knew had had a detention with their 'beloved' teacher Snape.  
  
"Snuffles is coming!" Harry cried.  
  
"That's wonderful!" She cried and then stared at everybody around the room. "Oh, guys, mind to come outside a bit? I need your help with something!"  
  
The other three stared at her and then followed her through the portrait.  
  
"Sorry, I couldn't talk there, I'm under Veritaserum" she said quickly.  
  
"Veritaserum?!" Harry asked.  
  
"Yeah, you know, the truth serum. Severus gave it to me. Oh, I think he's on his way to forgive me!"  
  
She grinned at them.  
  
"So, who's Snuffles?"  
  
They looked at each other and burst into laughter. Of course they hadn't told her! They always referred to him as 'Sirius' in her presence and when they showed her his letters. No, wait, they never did show her the letters. Only told her about them. And even if they did say 'Snuffles' in front of them, they never told her that was actually him. Of course she didn't know!  
  
"Sirius!" Harry chocked out.  
  
"Ooh." she said, understanding dawning on her face. And then, suddenly, she started jumping up and down, in excitement. "He'll be back, he'll be back! Yahoo! Is he ok? When's he coming? Where will he hide from the Ministry? How's he doing?"  
  
Harry grinned at her widely.  
  
"He's fine and I don't think he'll be hiding anymore! He said that Towers came up with some evidence to clear him!"  
  
"Oh, that's WONDERFUL!" she cried and jumped and hugged them. "WON-DER-FUL! So, when's he coming?"  
  
"He doesn't know yet, but he hopes it'll be soon!" Harry said, grinning.  
  
"We should get back!" Hermione said. "Oh, Amala, try to lie!"  
  
"I'm sad! I hate my life!" she said. "Great, the Veritaserum's gone!"  
  
"What do we tell the others?" Ron asked. "She said she needs our help with something"  
  
Hermione grinned.  
  
"Let's make up an excuse, shall we?"  
  
She took out a rock and her wand and muttered a spell. The parchment turned into a cat.  
  
"Wow, Hermione!" Ron said. "Good transfiguration!"  
  
"Thanks!" she said. "The story is you've found the cat and couldn't get it out of her hiding place. You needed our help."  
  
"Ok" Amala answered and they all went back to the common room, where their story had a great credibility.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Amala was very surprised to find out that Snape was feeling ill and couldn't take her in detention, so she had a detention with McGonagall instead and had to do some serious transfiguration so that she'd turn back goblets in animals. She asked Hermione and Ron about Snape ever being sick, but they said that such a thing had never occurred before.  
  
Saturday had come maybe a tad too quickly. Harry was pretty nervous about the match against Hufflepuff, even though they had trained very hard.  
  
There he was again in the middle of the changing rooms, putting on his Quiddich robes.  
  
"Alright, everybody!" Angelina said. "Up and let's go win us a Quiddich cup!"  
  
Ginny and Ron were done preparing too and they all went on the pitch. Harry saw the cheering crowd and he felt a bit nervous. He mounted his broom and they all flew up in the sky.  
  
Madam Hooch released the balls and everybody started zooming around. Harry stood up in the sky, looking at the Hufflepuff seeker and all the players in general.  
  
Soon after that, he heard the commentator cry:  
  
"AND GRYFFINDOR SCORES! 10-0 FOR GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Harry turned towards the person and saw that it was Orla Quirky from Ravenclaw. If he recalled correctly, she was a third year.  
  
He zoomed across the field and dodged a few Bludgers on his way. The other Seeker was dogging him and Harry felt a bit unnerved. Fine, if that was the way he wanted it to be, that was the way it would be!  
  
He flew around the Gryffindor hoops, giving a thumbs-up to Ron, who was doing greatly, then pretended to see the Snitch and did the 'Wronsky Feint' with the other Seeker. Well, he wasn't as good as Krum had been at the World Cup, but then again, neither was the Hufflepuff Seeker who just went into the ground. Harry raised his broom and went back up to the air, while the poor bloke was being nursed by Madam Hooch -who always gave first help- . Harry searched frenetically for the Snitch, but it appeared to be nowhere in sight.  
  
The other seeker was soon returned to his normal functions and started going back into the air when Harry saw it: the beautiful golden Snitch was zooming around the Gryffindor hoops. He heard the commentator cry:  
  
"And yet another wonderful protection from Weasley, who catches the Quaffle skillfully and yes, the score is still 70-20 for Gryffindor! But, oh, my God, is that the SNITCH?! Harry Potter rushes towards it. Where is the Hufflepuff seeker? There he is, 10 feet behind Potter! And. HE'S CAUGHT IT! HARRY POTTER HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH!"  
  
Harry had a feeling of déjà vu. Oh, yes, it had happen before!  
  
"220-20 to GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Harry zoomed around the pitch, carrying the small thing clutched in his hand. Life couldn't be better, as he landed and was carried around by happy Gryffindors and even a few Ravenclaws were joining in. Slytherins were all booing, of course!  
  
Amala and Hermione were jumping up and down with the other Gryffindors. Harry, Ron, Ginny and the rest of the team, however, couldn't do such a thing since they were carried around on the other people's hands.  
  
"Marvelous!" Harry heard a voice he had grown to know well. Towers was there, cheering. "Great Seeker knowledge, Harry! Good work, GRYFFINDORS!"  
  
The students had nearly dropped him when they noticed their Professor between them. However, they put him down gently and everybody headed towards the castle, celebrating the event.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
The party for the great win of the Gryffindors still hadn't finished and Harry, Ron, Hermione and Amala were heading towards the kitchens to take some food and drinks.  
  
It was a bit after the sleeping time and they were sneaking around, hoping they wouldn't get caught by anybody. They moved quietly down the corridors and suddenly they heard steps and the voice they feared.  
  
"What is that, my dear? Do you smell anybody?"  
  
They froze.  
  
"Filch." Amala whispered.  
  
"Quick, through here!" Harry said, pulling them towards another corridor.  
  
They ran and ran, until they had the feeling that they were safe.  
  
"Well, that was close!" Hermione said. "Thing about it, two Prefects and two other sixth-years sneaking around after bed time, this could've been serious!"  
  
"Yeah, but we're safe now!" Harry said. "Let's go!"  
  
"Where are they, my dear, do you smell them?" they heard Filch's voice again and Amala had to bite her lip not to cry out in surprise.  
  
"Here!" Ron said, dragging them to a door.  
  
They entered and shut the door and Hermione quietly locked it.  
  
"I think we're safe now" she said.  
  
"Uh-huh. But maybe we should wait here a bit, just in case" Harry said and the others agreed.  
  
He looked around the room. It was a dusty old room with a few chairs in it and a few shelves on the walls. A desk was in the front of it.  
  
"I've never been here before" he said towards his friends.  
  
"Neither have I", Ron answered.  
  
"It looks like nobody has been here for a long time. Odd" Hermione said, looking at the dusty floor.  
  
"Maybe house-elves don't bother with it anymore" Harry said.  
  
"Maybe" she answered.  
  
They explored it. The shelves were completely empty, not a single book or vial or anything on them.  
  
"It looks normal to me" Hermione said. "Wonder why it hasn't been used."  
  
Suddenly, there was a short cry and everybody turned towards Amala, who was on the floor.  
  
"I tripped" she explained and they helped her up.  
  
"Hey, look! What's that?" Ron asked, pointing to a bit of a glittering thing under the dust on floor.  
  
Harry went towards it and wiped off the dust, revealing a golden image of a dragon.  
  
"Oh, let me do this!" Hermione said and took out her wand. "Maybe there's more. Scourgify!"  
  
The floor cleaned and she did the same to the walls and everything around. When she was done, the floor appeared to be covered in small, golden paintings of animals -dragons, griffins, birds, and other creatures-, the walls were white and the chairs and the desk looked completely different now.  
  
"Wow!" they said, looking at the now majestic room.  
  
Amala was looking awestruck.  
  
"Gosh, look at this place!" she said. "Wow!"  
  
"I quite agree" Ron said. "Why would anybody abandon this room?"  
  
"Beats me" Hermione said. "Where are we, anyway?"  
  
"Dunno" Harry answered and then he hit his head. "The Marauder's Map! Of course!"  
  
He took out the piece of parchment and Ron looked at him and smirked.  
  
"Couldn't think of it earlier when Filch was hunting us, could you?"  
  
Harry took no notice and pointed to a place.  
  
"According to this, we're somewhere in the dungeons. Yeah, we did come down a lot."  
  
"Where's Filch?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Back in his rooms and. oh" he replied.  
  
"Oh what?" Amala asked.  
  
"Oh Towers' around. He might be friendly and all, but I still don't want him to catch me out in the night. You?"  
  
"Guess not" Hermione answered. "So, what do we do?"  
  
"Explore!" Amala said and jumped to look at the floor, while the others smiled. Trust Amala to be very curious and child-like! But, since they didn't have any better idea, they started looking around again."  
  
Harry looked through the room and landed on top of the dragon in the middle of the room. All the others were looking at the floor or the walls. Frankly, there was nothing about the room that could interest him, so why look around?  
  
Hermione came and sat in front of him.  
  
"Bored, eh?" she asked.  
  
"Yeah"  
  
Amala and Ron joined soon after. Harry had no idea why they sat on the marble floor, when they could have just taken the chairs. But it was nice and comfy there and somehow the floor wasn't cold. It was warm.  
  
"Is it safe to go now?" Ron asked and Harry looked at the map.  
  
"I think so" he answered and they all got up the floor. All but Amala.  
  
"Funny", she said. "I feel like singing."  
  
The others looked at her weirdly.  
  
"It's as if there was music in the room. And, do you know that feeling in a dream when somebody says something and you know that if it has a good meaning, the whole dream turns into something wonderful? And if it is bad, then you have the worst nightmare?"  
  
They all looked strangely at her.  
  
"Are you ok, Amala?" Ron asked.  
  
"Yes, I'm just trying to figure out if it is a good meaning or a bad one" she replied calmly.  
  
"What are you talking about?" Hermione asked.  
  
"The song. The music in the room. Don't tell me you can't feel it!" she said.  
  
"We can't!" Ron said and Amala looked thoughtful for a moment.  
  
"I'll give it a try" she said.  
  
"Give what a try?" Harry asked.  
  
"Sing" she responded.  
  
"Sing?" Hermione asked incredulously, but she already started.  
  
"We're the Kings of the Nordic Twilight We're the Lords of Ice and Snow For the glory we will fight For the peace we will ride For the skies we'll reign together!"  
  
They all stared at her.  
  
"Mate, I think we should get her to St. Mungo's" Ron said.  
  
But as Amala finished her song, the wall cracked and opened, revealing a new room that the others hadn't seen on the Marauder's Map. Amala jumped to her feet.  
  
"Shall we go in?" she asked, calmly, while the others were gaping.  
  
"How did you do that?" Harry asked.  
  
"You guys are so thick!" she said. "Not in your minds, but you're just like Muggles, can't see what's in front of your nose!"  
  
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, awestruck.  
  
"There's magic all over the place! And you can't feel it!"  
  
Amala looked a bit unnerved and then fell down to the floor.  
  
"Oh, I'm so sorry!" she whispered. "I don't know what came over me! You see, ever since I was a kid, I could feel things around me. I can feel when somebody gets close and I can sense when magic is done somewhere. I'm not too good at normal magic, but this I'm good at."  
  
They all looked at her.  
  
"So, are you psychic or something?" Ron asked.  
  
"I think so" she said and shrugged, picking herself up from the floor. "It's weird, as if already knew some things. You know, when I was small, a man told me that I was very open towards things and that my spiritual master will guide me well because of that. It's been weird. I know things sometimes and I try to understand them, but it's hard. And I never told anybody from my past school about this, only you and my parents know."  
  
They were still staring at her.  
  
"And I think I know what my role around here is" she said. "I had a good part in bringing Sirius back, but from now on, I'll be a messenger and tell people what will happen and what I feel. I think that. I really do. And now, with the music. I had to sing. I knew it. It wasn't because of me. It was because of you. Gosh. It's weird to have it all out of my system. I had kept it a secret for a long while."  
  
"Yeah" Harry said, still staring at her.  
  
"Get used to it" she said and walked in the room. "It might happen for a while."  
  
They entered after her and Harry decided not to think about it just then and inspect the room instead. It was quite a difference from the past room, especially the way it first looked when they came in.  
  
It was a 10 on 20 meter room with a fireplace -actually lighted! - in one of the sides. They had entered through the wall somewhere in the middle of it. Near the fireplace there were three comfortable-looking armchairs and a small bookcase. In the middle of the room, there were four armchairs around a table and a larger bookcase. In the right side, opposite the fireplace there were some other armchairs, put in a circle. The whole room was colored in blue and gold and the armchairs were brown. The floor had rugs on it of different colors and it was quite fluffy. It was a very comfortable and pleasant-looking room.  
  
But just as they all entered, the wall went back to its usual place and they all screamed in surprise.  
  
"How are we all going to get out?" Ron squeaked.  
  
Amala got out of the state of shock and answered:  
  
"We will easily. But first, let's have a look around."  
  
The girls went and picked up some books in the bookcase and started looking through them.  
  
"Whoa!" Hermione said. "'A Short Guide to Escapes'. Short? It's at least 600 pages long."  
  
"'The Spells of the Ancient'" Amala read. "Look at these spells! Protection charms, phoenix charms."  
  
Harry decided to look through the books himself.  
  
"The Dark Wizard Typology" he said and chuckled. "I wonder if Voldemort is in here..." He looked through the book. No Voldemort. Must be before that. He looked better. No Grindewald, either. How old were these books? However, there were a few wizards mentioned, but he had never heard of them.  
  
"Look!" Hermione cried. "'Hogwarts: The History!' See, I told you it was a well-known book! It's spelled wrong, but that doesn't matter!"  
  
She opened the book, a happy look on her face and almost immediately gaped.  
  
"This is definitely not 'Hogwarts: A History'" she said.  
  
"What do you mean, Hermione?" Ron asked, looking at her.  
  
"I've read 'Hogwarts: A History' so many times that I almost know it by heart. This is not it. Listen: "The Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry was founded near the year 1000. More precise, the construction for the building began in 987, but it was finished, even though just partially, in 999. The four founders, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, Godric Gryffindor and Salazar Slytherin have all worked through magic or otherwise at the construction!" Do you see it?"  
  
The others stared at each other.  
  
"Um, no" Harry said and Hermione rolled her eyes in despair.  
  
"Nobody ever mentions when Hogwarts was founded because nobody knows! But, the author of this book obviously does! He speaks of the precise dates. Oh, and look here! "The founders were out on a hunting day in the year of grace 1000 when they were attacked by a group of hungry vampires. They all fought bravely against them, but there was no way the ones could be mastered. When all hope was lost, however, a man appeared and helped in battle, easily bringing the founders to a victory. They were very grateful and asked the man what he wanted as a reward for saving their lives and therefore, even the school, which was about to have its first students that fall and offered him gold and help for whatever he wanted. It is said that the man just laughed at their ideas and told them he needed none of their help or money. However, there was one thing he wanted as a payment: he wanted the school itself, their beloved Hogwarts."  
  
"What?!" Ron said. "But - such a thing was never mentioned in History classes.  
  
"I know" Hermione said. "On we go! "The founders refused at first, not wanting their own school to go in the hands of the man, but he insisted and told them he was the Lord of the Darkness."  
  
"A Lord of Darkness saved Hogwarts?" Harry asked incredulously.  
  
"Apparently. "They all remembered his fighting on the light side and told him that they still didn't want to join them. But then he swore that, through his immortality, he will always guard upon the school and that he will place charms on it so that it would be very well-protected against the dark side. Finally, they accepted."  
  
"They DID?!" Harry asked, jumping up in surprise. "And what's this immortal part?"  
  
"Dunno" Hermione said and shrugged. "The founders led him to Hogwarts where he placed many wards, such as the Anti-apparition one and the Great Ward of Light, which was supposed to come in action when the dark side really attacked the school and which he could not fight. He put wards of incredible power and then he summoned the core of magic itself and asked it to guard the castle and live in it. From then on, everything came to life and stairs started moving and armors started talking and the whole castle came to life. It is said that for the school, he called the stars and planets and the elements in order to place the wards."  
  
"That must have been some serious magic" Ron said, but Hermione took no notice.  
  
"After this was done, he signed a contract with the founders which made him the official owner of the school and copied it in three copies. One was to be put in Hogwarts, in a place that only he and the founders knew, the second he gave to the founders themselves and the third he kept himself. Then, he parted from his castle and went off in his own battles once more." Wow! Do you guys know what this means?"  
  
They all shrugged.  
  
"Hogwarts has an owner! And if he is immortal, then we might end up with him around here!"  
  
"But, Hermione," Harry said, "don't you need the Philosopher's Stone to become immortal? And wasn't Nicholas Flamel the first maker of the Stone and isn't he just 600 years old? This guy's supposed to be 1000!"  
  
She looked a bit thoughtful.  
  
"I don't know."  
  
She put the book back, but soon afterwards she took it out again.  
  
"Aha!" she cried. "Look at this! It's a very correct version! "Soon after it's founding, Hogwarts started hiring house-elves to do the household work, since it was practically impossible for the wizards to handle it, even with self-cleaning charms!" I never read that in 'Hogwarts: A History'"  
  
Harry chuckled.  
  
"So, how do we get out?" Ron asked and the others felt a pretty big problem around.  
  
Amala stared at the wall.  
  
"Open!" she said, but it wouldn't move. She gulped and went to it, touched it and then retried: "open".  
  
"Try that song you were singing" Hermione said and the girl nodded.  
  
"We're the Kings of the Nordic Twilight We're the Lords of Ice and Snow For the glory we will fight For the peace we will ride For the skies we'll reign together!"  
  
The wall didn't move.  
  
"Must have a different password" Amala said and gulped, trying not to look despaired.  
  
"No problem, we'll get out of here" Hermione said.  
  
"Um, alohomora!" Amala tried, but the wall didn't move.  
  
"Let me try" Harry said. "Reducio!"  
  
The wall didn't even seem affected.  
  
"It doesn't work on enchanted walls, Harry" Hermione said. "Can you try to parseltongue it?"  
  
"Parseltongue it?!" Harry asked, not understanding.  
  
"Yeah, mate, as in try to speak in parseltongue it" Ron said.  
  
Harry looked at the wall.  
  
"Open!"  
  
"I understood that" Hermione said and Harry thought hard of a snake.  
  
"Open!"  
  
"Still not it" Ron said and Harry imagined a snake, slithering next to a door. He closed his eyes.  
  
*-Open-*  
  
"That was good mate" Ron said. "But it's not working"  
  
Harry opened his eyes.  
  
"I guess not"  
  
They stared at the door, each trying a worse and worse solution for the problem. Suddenly, Ron shot towards Amala.  
  
"If you - if you would have kept your mouth shut, we wouldn't be here now!" he cried.  
  
"Ron, it's not her fault" Hermione said, shaking her head. "Let's concentrate on how to get put of here and not who's guilty of us being here, ok?"  
  
He looked enraged towards Amala again and then calmed down and let himself fall on an armchair.  
  
"We're doomed" he said calmly.  
  
"Not necessarily" Amala said and they looked towards her. "I don't feel anything right now, but I know something: if there's a way to get in, there's a way to get out."  
  
"Except that we don't know it" Harry pointed out.  
  
"Yes, well, think like this: if anybody opens the door accidentally, like me, they must have a way to get out. The problem is how"  
  
"Good morning, sunshine" Ron said mockingly. Amala took no notice.  
  
"And then you can definitely get out in a way that must be told from the inside. It's good that there are four of us, that way we might figure this out faster and it's wonderful that Hermione is the here! She's the smartest witch around, she can definitely find the answer!"  
  
Harry thought she had a point. A good one, too.  
  
Hermione looked at her and smiled sadly.  
  
"Except that I can't think of anything now."  
  
"Let's look in the books. Maybe."  
  
Hermione jerked up and started looking through every book that was in her reach.  
  
"No, no, no, odd, this one's empty, no, no."  
  
Harry stared at the wall, until she said 'odd'. Then, he turned to the witch that was quickly looking at the covers of the books which she had spread on the table.  
  
"Wait! Where's the empty one?" he asked.  
  
Hermione looked at him.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"Two words: Tom's diary" he said and her eyes widened.  
  
"I forgot" she said and threw him the book. He caught it and looked at the cover. It was blue with golden stars on the cover. He opened it.  
  
"Hermione - it's not empty" he said.  
  
On the middle page, where he accidentally flipped it, there were many words written, although the rest of the book was indeed opened.  
  
The books cannot be taken out, nor can the room be opened by them who do not know the password and it can't be opened from the inside as long as there is someone on the outside who knows not the password. The books will tell the story and the Lord of Darkness will rise again when his time will come.  
  
And for you who have been called and do not know the reason, hear it now! It lies within you, and it always will. Heroes and kings, the Lord welcomes you all! Wizards and witches and mages and shamans, you are greeted by him. Ones who need help and ones who need shelter, you will find it here. And if by mistake you're here, it means there is a reason.  
  
And if you do not know the secret of leaving this blessed place and your steps go in circles, it means that he has not come with you. If you lie trapped in this golden cage, let this old book guide your steps. Its pages are blank for the untrained eye, but it might contain more than you think and welcoming you here is just the middle of your journey, which is yet to be written. Or are you at the end, coming to see old friends in this chamber? Or has your journey just begun and guided here you've been to meet your destiny? Either way, I will now tell you the secret of leaving this room.  
  
You can leave in one of the two ways, but which way will you go? Will you return to where you've been before, or shall you go forward with great courage? If you're at the beginning, you shall go forward, for there is no other way and you will be guided always forward. If you are at the middle, you can choose and then you shall see. And if you're at the end, you will move forward until there is no end and you will know why.  
  
And chose your way, if you are in the middle. Go back considering your chances and come back here when they are good. Your chances are the key. The chance to go back is given by three things. Choose them wisely. And once you know, then you will be welcomed back and forth as a friend.  
  
And to go forward it's a problem. For that you will need courage and you will have to think of the way to do it and try. Are you ready to go forward? Speak your purpose.  
  
"Well, that's weird" Hermione said. "It's obviously a riddle. And I don't know whether the 'forward' and 'backward' are symbolical or not. Well, there's obviously a password. Let's see. What pulls you back?"  
  
"Um, not being powerful enough" Amala said.  
  
"Attachment" Ron added.  
  
"Fear" Harry said.  
  
Hermione looked at them.  
  
"Weakness, attachment, fear" she said and smiled. "You know, if you take the first two letters of the last words and the first four of the first, you get 'weak feat'. That could also get you back."  
  
"I don't think it's 'weak feat', no offence, Hermione" Amala said.  
  
"Neither do I, I was just making an observation."  
  
Ron sat down on an armchair.  
  
"So, we're stuck."  
  
It was the truth. They were stuck.  
  
"How about we go forward?" Harry asked.  
  
"How?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Well, I don't know, let's speak our purpose" he said.  
  
"Oh, great!" Ron said. "Going back to the Gryffindor Tower so we won't be late and we get some sleep tonight!"  
  
"That could be one of the reasons to go back" Amala noted.  
  
"The other would be that we don't have a clue about why we're here" Harry said.  
  
"And the third would be because we're not supposed to be here" Hermione said.  
  
"Not it" Ron mumbled.  
  
"How about because we're not supposed to be here yet?" Hermione asked. "I hate riddles that might end up with us remaining here."  
  
"Not good reasons" Hermione noted after she saw that nothing happened.  
  
"How's this for a reason?!" Ron boomed, angrily. "WE'RE HERE BECAUSE AMALA SANG AND WE WANT TO GO BACK!"  
  
"I don't know" Hermione mumbled. "Maybe the things are objects. Oh, why did we come in here?!"  
  
"That's IT!" Amala cried. "They might not be objects, but close! We got in here because I sang and because. Darn, I can't find any other reason."  
  
"You were sitting on that dragon and expected something to happen" Hermione said. "But I don't see how. oh."  
  
"Oh what?" Harry asked.  
  
"We should sit somewhere and do something and expect the wall to open. Amala, got ay singing ideas?"  
  
"Nope, sorry" she answered.  
  
"I just wanna go back, this isn't going anywhere" Ron mumbled, leaning in the armchair.  
  
"Well, so do we!" Hermione said. "But we're working on it and who knows how much it will."  
  
The wall cracked and opened.  
  
".take" Hermione finished. "What the-"  
  
They all stared at the wall and Ron most of all.  
  
"How did it open?"  
  
"That's IT!" Hermione cried. "Of course, how could I not think of it?"  
  
"Think of what?" Ron asked.  
  
"You did it, Ron!" Hermione said, excited. "Way to go!"  
  
"What did I do?" Ron asked, not understanding.  
  
"Three things! Of course! Wanting to go back, understanding you can't go forward and giving up. None of these can take you forward. We were still trying to figure it out, so we were trying to go forward and understand what we must say. But, if you give up on everything and stop trying to go anywhere and just. lie down, you go backwards! Of course!"  
  
"How does she think like that?" Ron asked the others and Amala and Harry shrugged.  
  
Suddenly, they heard a thump and turned. The blue and gold book had fallen on the floor and opened.  
  
"Well, that's weird, I could have sworn I put it in the middle of the table" Harry said.  
  
Hermione picked it up and almost shut it when she cried:  
  
"Look! It's changed!"  
  
So, backwards you shall go. Until you shall go forward, you will not know that way, but once you go back once, you can always do it. He has seen and welcomed you as friends and has given you a password. The answer to the riddle has been that you want to go back and that you say it and that he lets you do it.  
  
Until next time, take care. And your password be 'light warriors.  
  
"Well, it's a bit of a different than what I thought it was" Hermione said.  
  
"Who is 'he'?!" Ron asked.  
  
"Dunno" Harry answered.  
  
"The Lord" Hermione answered. "Remember, it was said in the book something about a Lord"  
  
"Yeah, you're right" Ron said. "As usual. Come on, let's get out of here, before it changes it's mind."  
  
They all exited and the wall went back.  
  
"Let me try something" Hermione said. "Light warriors"  
  
The walls opened.  
  
"Close" she demanded and the walls did so. "well, looks like we can come back whenever we want to"  
  
"Yeah, but I don't think I want to." Ron said.  
  
"I do" Hermione said. "Saw those books? Bet they aren't in the library! But, just to check, I'll ask Madam Pince about them"  
  
"You do so, now let's go back, everybody must wonder where we are" Harry said and looked at his watch. It was near midnight.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Amala was wondering around the school at night. She yawned and let her feat take her wherever they wanted.  
  
It was an hour before the sleeping time and she walked around, thinking about various things and especially her parents and old friends, whom she missed terribly. Not that she would admit it! She loved Hogwarts and Harry, Ron and Hermione were just wonderful and even more of her psychic powers started showing. Her parents knew, of course, but none of her older friends did. They just didn't take things seriously enough, so how could she have told them about something that meant so much to her and then have her small gift be known throughout the whole school and her friends making fun of her? Plus, it wasn't nearly as strong as now. Ever since she had met death -literally- she was much stronger in that part. Maybe she should have taken Divination.  
  
She stopped in her tracks when she realized where she was: in the dungeons, just three meters away from Severus' classroom. Well, since she was already here, why not ask him what was wrong, why her detention had been with McGonagall and not him.  
  
Just as she was about to open the door, she asked herself whether that was a good idea or not. Maybe not. But, she could ask him whether he was healthy, right? And maybe she would get kicked right out of the classroom. Why not try it, though? She had been very daring about that kiss, hadn't she? And it turned out fine, hadn't it?  
  
She opened the door and entered the classroom and looked inside. It was empty, but she entered anyway and looked around.  
  
"Professor?" she asked quietly.  
  
"Yes" came a voice from his office.  
  
She went towards the half-opened door.  
  
"Good evening, Professor" she said towards the man sitting behind his desk.  
  
"Mrs. Wright, may I ask you what the hell you're doing here at this time of night?" he asked.  
  
"It's not past the time when we must return to our dorms. Are you in good health, Professor?" she asked shyly.  
  
"Yes, I am" came the reply, spat out as if he didn't mean to say it. "And I will ask you to leave my office and classroom now" he said.  
  
"Sure, sir" she said, but then turned back to him. "Why didn't you take me in detention, sir?"  
  
Severus glared at her and answered between his teeth.  
  
"Because I drank a whole bottle of Veritaserum and I had, and still have, the effects"  
  
"Oh" she answered.  
  
"Leave now" he said, glaring at her. "Or I will start taking house points"  
  
She nodded, but didn't move, although he was glaring furiously at her.  
  
"Are you mad at me, Professor? For what I said? Or have you forgiven me?"  
  
Severus glared at her furiously.  
  
"I'm not bloody mad at you, I made a mistake! I have forgiven you, 50 points from Gryffindor for you being a bloody Slytherin!" he spat.  
  
"Very well, sir" she said and turned to the door and made to leave, when she heard him.  
  
"Mrs. Wright, wait!"  
  
"Yes, sir?" she asked.  
  
"If you tell anybody about me being under Veritaserum until I'm off the effect, I will take fifty points from Gryffindor and one hundred for any blasted student that dares come in here asking questions. Got it?"  
  
"Yes, sir" she replied. "And how long do the effects last?"  
  
"For 30 more hours. This is not the point!"  
  
"Very well, sir" she said and turned to leave again and then had a bad thought. "Do you mind if I call you Severus, when we're in private?"  
  
"No. Damn!"  
  
She chuckled. Why not be a Slytherin?  
  
"And do you think we could be together?"  
  
"Yes. ONE HUNDRED POINTS FROM GRYFFINDOR, YOU ANNOYING GIRL, NOW LEAVE BEFORE YOU'RE LEFT WITH NO SPARE POINTS!"  
  
She looked at him, a bit afraid. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to do such a thing.  
  
"That's all I wanted to know. Thank you, Severus, good night!"  
  
She rand out of the room, leaving a very angry Potion Master behind.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
The next morning, everybody who looked at the point board had a huge surprise: Gryffindor was on the last place, with only 180 points, while Hufflepuff had 210, Ravenclaw 290 and Slytherin 331. And they were all so sure that Gryffindor had had at least 300!  
  
However, five students knew about this thing.  
  
"I can't believe you did that!" Ron whispered to Amala.  
  
"He, he, I'll get those points back."  
  
"We lost 150 points on one night too when we were on our first year at Hogwarts" Harry whispered. "Just that then it was me, Hermione and Neville who did the house-point loosing, not just one of us."  
  
"Yeah, well, you were young" Amala said. "So, let me see, if I lost already 200 points for a crush on Snape and gathered 100 and lost ten more, it means that I have to get 110 points in order for the Gryffindor house to be as good as it would have been without me."  
  
"Good math" Harry said.  
  
"Thanks. Oh, well, there go all my nights, studying for house-points."  
  
"I won't argue with you on that" Ron said as they started eating their breakfast.  
  
"You know, our first lessons are canceled" Hermione said. "It would have been double Potions. Not a surprise either. But what happened to Snape? You didn't tell us."  
  
"I'll tell you tomorrow" Amala said. "I promised I wouldn't, under the threat of losing more house points. And I don't want to do that. You know, if he put me under Veritaserum once, he can do it again."  
  
"So, you'll tell us tomorrow?" Ron asked. "Why won't you tell us today?"  
  
"Tomorrow it'll be safe" she replied.  
  
They ate breakfast and then went to the library, where Amala seemed to be trying to read every book that reached her hand, especially on the subjects they would be learning soon.  
  
After two hours, they went to the Charms classroom, where Flitwick finally decided they should move on. After a small test.  
  
"Very good students, very good" he said, as jolly as always. "Now, it's time we try our spells last time, good? I want you to think of a song, something complicated and then say the incantation, alright? Remember, veni cantus!"  
  
Hermione tried hers first and Harry recognized 'Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen.  
  
"Perfect, Mrs. Granger!" he said happily. "Now, Mr. Weasley"  
  
"Veni Cantus" he cried and Harry recognized a song by the Weird Sisters.  
  
"Perfect! Mr. Potter?"  
  
Harry was a bit nervous. Ok, let's think.  
  
"Veni Cantus!" he cried and the song came out perfectly.  
  
"Hotel California, a great song!" Flitwick said merrily. "Mrs. Wright?"  
  
She took out her wand.  
  
"Veni Cantus!"  
  
Harry didn't recognize this one.  
  
"What is it?" he asked the happy girl when she came back to her seat.  
  
"Scorpions-'No one like you'. Oh, I've an idea! Professor!"  
  
Flitwick turned towards her.  
  
"Yes, Mrs. Wright?"  
  
"Can I try another one? This is relatively simple."  
  
"Well, of course, dear" he said.  
  
"Veni Cantus!"  
  
Harry decided: she was crazy. This was one of the most complicated songs she could've chosen. It sounded like Mozart or Vivaldi to him.  
  
"Oh, I know this one!" Flitwick cried. "Beethoven, isn't it? The 9th Symphony?"  
  
"Why, yes it is, sir!" she said. "I like it"  
  
"Oh, very well done! It is quite difficult to do it. 10 points to Gryffindor!"  
  
"Thank you sir!" she said and sat down near Harry again.  
  
"That was good" he said,  
  
"Thanks" she replied. "You know, I still have 100 points to go."  
  
"You have a real stress, did you know that?" Harry asked.  
  
"Yeah, I do, but if the Gryffindors don't win the House Cup, it's my fault."  
  
"Too much of a stress" Harry whispered.  
  
She smiled and nodded.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Snape returned to his classes on Tuesday and Harry, Ron, Hermione and Amala had a great deal of fun hearing and remembering Amala's meeting with the angry Professor.  
  
On Tuesday night, however, Amala had to return to Snape's detention and she was wondering whether he was still mad for her 'acting like a Slytherin'. Well, she did have her small little cheating things.  
  
She reached for the dungeons and opened the door.  
  
"Hello, Severus" she said when she saw him alone at his desk.  
  
"Hello, Mrs. Wright" he said.  
  
"Please, call me Amala" she said and entered properly, since she had just put her head through the door before.  
  
He looked murderous. In fact, the girl started wondering why he hadn't snapped before.  
  
"Fine, Amala" he sneered and sat down at his desk. "Sit"  
  
She did as he asked her to, wishing that she could treat him like a normal boyfriend and say she was angry with him about the Veritaserum thing and act upset, but there were two reasons not to do that: one: he was her Professor and overall-hard-to-reach-rock-hearted-ex-spy and two: she had done the same bloody thing! But she at least wished she could make his life hell for treating her like a dog. 'Sit'. Hmpf.  
  
"What the hell were you thinking for asking me questions while I was under Veritaserum?" he asked.  
  
"That you'd answer with the truth" she replied.  
  
Well, she did have a point.  
  
"Annoying brat" he mumbled.  
  
"Not as annoying as others" she replied.  
  
"What do you mean with that?" he asked, upset.  
  
"Nothing. Just that others are more annoying than me, you know" she said. "And it's not my fault that I'm too damned curious and courageous, although I probably should have stopped myself."  
  
"Yes, you should have" he said, glaring at her.  
  
She decided to take another measure, since this was not working.  
  
"But I'm sorry" she said. "I really am. I wanted some answers which you wouldn't have given to me if you hadn't been under the potion. Now I'm sorry I did it, it clearly upset you."  
  
He looked at her, defying him somehow, yet apologizing.  
  
"It's just that I knew you wouldn't answer like that once the potion's effect was off you. You're too. suspicious at everything that moves"  
  
That was true. He was very suspicious.  
  
"Too many years of working as a spy" he mumbled, not realizing that he did so.  
  
"Why?" she asked, gaining interest.  
  
"Why what?" he asked, suddenly looking up in her eyes.  
  
"Why did you say that you had too many years of work as a spy?" she asked, curiously.  
  
"Nothing" he answered.  
  
"Please, do tell" she pleaded.  
  
"Nothing"  
  
"Please?"  
  
He shouldn't have said it out loud! Darn. But.  
  
"I don't trust anybody" he replied "until I really know everything about them."  
  
"Quirrel" she whispered. "You knew what he really wanted, didn't you? Harry said you did."  
  
He looked at her weird.  
  
"What did he say?"  
  
"That in his first year, he saw you. talk to Quirrel on a few occasions and you threatened him and at first he thought you were the one who wanted the Stone, but then it turned out that you were, um, a good guy and smelled Quirrel before anyone else had. And he said you saved his life, at a Quiddich match in that year."  
  
Well, those were a few things he didn't know. So, Potter had been talking about him, eh? And saying things that weren't bad about him.  
  
"Yes, there was something about Quirrel"  
  
She smiled.  
  
"Nearly nothing, just Voldemort attached to the back of his head, that's all."  
  
He shivered at the name.  
  
"Do not speak the Dark Lord's name" he hissed, anger behind his eyes.  
  
"Ok" she said, a bit afraid of him. "Um, are you still cross with me?"  
  
He looked at her, sitting there so scared and vulnerable and asking him if he was still upset. Well, it wasn't her fault that she didn't know not to speak the name in front of him.  
  
"No" he answered, wondering whether it was true.  
  
She smiled, a bit scared.  
  
"Thanks for forgiving me" she whispered. "I hate it when you're cross with me"  
  
He had to guess the last words. She was so. so small and frightened, and yet she had had the nerve to kiss him on that detention. And she nearly made him sorry for giving her Veritaserum. Nearly. He decided to pretend that he hadn't heard the last comment. She lifted her eyes from the desk, where she was looking and got up and circled the desk.  
  
"What are you doing, Amala?" he asked, using her first name without irony for the first time.  
  
She looked at him and smiled.  
  
"Deciding that I'm too far from you" she whispered.  
  
'The nerve.' he thought admiringly. Wait! Had he been taking any weird potion lately? This was not him. Of course, kissing students wasn't him either. 'I wonder.'  
  
Amala looked at him, still smiling, as he pulled himself up from the chair and made a step towards her. He pushed his head towards her and she did the same thing, their mouths meeting in mid-way.  
  
It was a wonderful kiss, for both of them. Severus was a good kisser and she loved to feel his mouth on hers, him surprisingly gently sucking her lower lip.  
  
When he broke the kiss, she was -there was no other word for her- sparkling.  
  
"Wow "she whispered and looked him in the eyes.  
  
He was just wondering what he was supposed to do, when the door opened and he glared at whoever came in. and that just happened to be Dumbledore.  
  
"Oh, hello, Severus" he said, smiling a little. "I just wanted to ask whether you might have some spare Wolfsbane Potion. Remus has run out of it, you know, and he has to go there."  
  
"Yes, I just happen to have some" he answered and walked towards his office.  
  
Dumbledore was looking at Amala who was composing a neutral face, after having reddened from head to toe.  
  
"Having a bad time in detention?" the Headmaster asked.  
  
"Um, yeah" she answered and reddened again.  
  
"You might be interested to know that Sirius's case is just being judged at the Ministry."  
  
"Really?!" she said, grinning. "Is he ok? How long will it take until he's cleared?"  
  
Dumbledore smiled at her.  
  
"Not long. Not long at all. He hasn't been at the Ministry yet, since they'd probably lock him up for the period, but I've met him and he said, amongst other things, to thank you again. And I do thank you, Mrs. Wright"  
  
She looked at him and smiled.  
  
"Thanks, but." Should she say it? "I think I've had help, Professor. I think that Professor Towers helped me."  
  
He looked at her, a bit more serious.  
  
"I don't think it was him. Most likely, it was his Master."  
  
"I keep hearing that, Headmaster. What is about his Master?" she asked and Dumbledore looked as if he were thinking.  
  
"Well, there's not much I can tell you, actually. He's one of the weird people who have great powers and know great secrets and stay in the shadows."  
  
"Aha" she said. Although this didn't answer her question, it was still something.  
  
Severus returned with a few vials of potion, which he handed to Dumbledore.  
  
"Thank you, Severus" the Headmaster said and nodded in goodbye, going out the door.  
  
"Well, um." Amala started saying. "I think I should be going. It's getting late and all that."  
  
"Yeah" Severus answered.  
  
She was just about to leave, when she turned back and kissed him gently on the cheek.  
  
"Good night" she said, smiling.  
  
"Good night" he answered, still a bit in surprise.  
  
He watched her leave. Was he doing the right thing? And what was wrong about him?! He didn't just do things like kissing girls he was previously upset with. Although, he couldn't say he minded what came out of the situation.  
  
Suddenly, a thought occurred to him. He rushed towards the small library he had in his office and picked up one of his favorite books about potions and opened it at 'Veritaserum' and looked at the side effects and aftereffects.  
  
"Dizziness, lost of concentration. no, no. aha! 'After drinking a great amount of the potion and getting out of its effect, one may find himself not thinking as accustomed and maybe a bit more careless.'"  
  
Severus closed the book upset. So, it was because of a potion he forgave her like that and mumbled things out loud and let her come so close and kissing her. For the first time in a veeeery long period of time, a few words escaped his mouth:  
  
"I hate potions."  
  
Then, he glared back at the book. Why didn't it warn him? But maybe it was better this way. Now, Hogwarts' Potion Master had -unofficially- a girlfriend. He let himself to the strange Veritaserum aftereffect urges and smiled.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Amala had just finished telling Harry, Ron and Hermione about her detention -without some of the things she said under Veritaserum, of course and without the exact details of the wonderful kiss and some details, ok, maybe a little more, but including the things Dumbledore had said and a somehow much shortened version of the story-.  
  
"Whoa. What's wrong with him?" Ron asked.  
  
"Well" she said, smiling sheepishly, "after I found out he drank way too much Veritaserum, I decided to do a bit of research. And I came up with a few not so well known facts."  
  
Ron rolled his eyes, clearly wondering whether all girls were bookworms when they found out something interesting.  
  
"And I sort of a found out that under Veritaserum you can't attack people. Maybe it was an additional thing, since you don't want to have yourself killed instead of anybody answering your question, right? And drinking a huge amount of the potion makes you stop thinking and cough up all your secrets, unless you're one of those people, who are lucky enough to keep their heads, although losing it when asked a question. It wears off after a while, but there are a few effects that are quite unpleasant if you're one of the 'lucky ones', such as migraines and other physical effects. And even when you think all the effects are gone, you can lie, but you feel safer around people and have a tendency to let your guard down and maybe even change your way of thinking a little. So, that might explain it a little."  
  
"Snape with migraines!" Ron said, dreamily. "Christmas has come early."  
  
The others laughed, including Amala.  
  
"Well, I'll let you get away with it. Now" she said, looking mischievous.  
  
They laughed again and then Hermione proposed they'd call it a night and go to bed. None argued.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
On the following day, they went down to the Great Hall feeling especially jolly. And it turned out they had a good reason, when the owl post came.  
  
"Harry, LOOK!" Hermione cried, tossing the Daily Prophet to him.  
  
The rest of the Great Hall was gasping and gaping and everybody seemed to be talking. Harry picked up the paper and stated reading.  
  
Sirius Black-Could He Be Innocent?  
  
Everybody at the Ministry was shocked when well-known wizard and current Hogwarts teacher Jack Towers, also of great help during some Auror actions, came up yesterday with piece of evidence that Sirius Black might have been innocent all these years.  
  
The tall, black haired, blue eyed wizard just came into the Minister's office yesterday and said, according to witnesses, "Fudge, a mistake has been done and it is time we correct it". When the Minister demanded to know what it was all about, the wizard explained that Sirius Black has been badly charged 15 years ago! The well known escapee from Azkaban is supposedly innocent of the charges that have been brought against him. He said that one of the 'killed' people was Peter Pettigrew, former housemate of Sirius Black at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and it was not Black that killed the other people, but Pettigrew himself.  
  
The Minister told Towers that such a thing was not possible, since Pettigrew had died himself and therefore could not be charged, but Towers told him about Peter Pettigrew being an unregistered Animagus -wizard who can change himself without a wand into an animal- and having the form of a rat and escaping in his rat form from the scene of the crime.  
  
The Minister has asked for proof and Towers showed him pictures -which he refused to say how he got- with Pettigrew and claiming they were recent shot. He also claimed that Pettigrew had a great role in the resurrection of You-Know-Who, taking care of him until he could get a body.  
  
"It was amazing!" Auror Nymphadora Tonks says, "He just stormed in, saying "Fudge, a mistake has been done and it is time we correct it" and then the Minister asked him what he was doing there and Towers said: "Sirius Black is an innocent man unrightfully charged and I can prove it". Then, he started to tell him about James and Lily Potter, who knew they would be hunted by You-Know-Who and asked for help. Then, Albus Dumbledore proposed the Fidelius Charm, which hides a person, object, place, whatever, from anybody who hasn't heard about it from the Secret Keeper, who of course keeps the secret within himself.  
  
And then, he explained how the Secret Keeper should have been Sirius Black, but instead was switched to Peter Pettigrew who betrayed the Potters and then You-Know-Who went to kill them". At this point, she has tears in her eyes. "And he wanted to kill little Harry. Oh, well, you know the story. Then, Sirius Black went around their house and saw it destroyed. He gave his motorcycle to Rubeus Hagrid, who delivered Harry to his aunt and uncle and then went out to find Pettigrew. Seeing no signs of struggle, he realized something was terribly wrong and set out to find Pettigrew and bring him to justice. Unfortunately, Pettigrew pulled out a stunt and pretended to be killed by Sirius Black and also killed a dozen Muggles in the process and ran away in his rat form. When Aurors arrived at the spot soon, they found Sirius Black laughing like a maniac. When Fudge asked how come somebody would laugh at that, Towers said: "Mind you, I'd laugh like that too, when I had just lost my best friend and his wife in the past day and now, trying to get the one responsible for this, I get framed for the death of a dozen Muggles and the real responsible person, the rat, gets away and is even considered a hero.  
  
Fudge was extremely skeptical at this explanation, but then Towers continued, saying that Pettigrew had run off and found You-Know-Who and helped him gain back some kind of a body and then, nearly a year after, You- Know-Who did some serious dark magic, bringing his master into a real body by taking Harry Potter's blood, a bone of his father's and the arm of his servant. Then he said that Pettigrew has a silver hand.  
  
Anyways, the Minister didn't believe him, but then Towers took out about 30 pictures and showed him Pettigrew in each of them. You should have heard them afterwards, the Minister was starting to lose his temper, but Towers continued calmly to talk. It was soo weird."  
  
Well, the wizarding community is wondering whether escapee Sirius Black would be cleared. Until the final verdict, the Daily Prophet will keep you with news updates every day!  
  
Special correspondent,  
Rita Skeeter  
  
"Wow! Wow, wow, wow!" Harry said, grinning like mad. "Sirius is gonna be cleared!"  
  
"What do you mean, Harry?" Lavender asked from across the table. "Are you happy this will happen?"  
  
Harry stopped grinning.  
  
"If he's innocent, of course I am" he said.  
  
"I'm not. Think about it" she said "he's been in Azkaban for twelve years and then escaped. You've got to know some serious dark magic to do that."  
  
"Maybe yes, maybe no" Hermione said. "But I don't think so. He's been James Potter's best friend; I don't think he would've chosen a dark wizard as a friend."  
  
"Some friend!" Parvati said. "Did you read the 'Secret Keeper' part?"  
  
"Yes, I have" Hermione said. "And I believe Towers."  
  
"I don't" Lavender said again. "I've never felt safe in his classes, now I'm feeling even worse. You know, he's a suspect for Monica Kane's murder and even for having a part in the Death Eater attack against Wick"  
  
"He hasn't done anything wrong! He might be weird and a bit. dark, but he's not evil. Then, we'd have to blame Snape as well!"  
  
"What if Snape is on the bad side?" Lavender asked. "He's rumored to have been a Death Eater and old habits die hard."  
  
"He's not a Death Eater!" Amala said, her eyes shinning.  
  
"Are you talking about Towers or Snape?" Lavender asked.  
  
"Both!" Amala said. "I trust them both and I have a very good intuition!"  
  
"Hah! Good intuition!" Parvati started.  
  
"I trust Towers" Neville said from farther away. "Although I don't really like Snape."  
  
Amala smiled at him.  
  
"He's a nice guy. Towers" she said.  
  
"Yeah, him and You-Know-Who!" Parvati said.  
  
Amala was glaring.  
  
"He's a nice guy, trust me. I know"  
  
"How do you know?" Lavender asked.  
  
"I just do."  
  
"Listen, I might not like Snape, but I think Towers is ok" Harry jumped in the conversation.  
  
"Thanks" Amala mouthed.  
  
"I trust him" Ron said.  
  
"And I do too" Hermione said.  
  
"Oh, come on, how can you trust him? Did you see what he did to Malfoy? And he brought the Necrow to class! And he's acting. weird"  
  
Harry suddenly noted a presence that had been there for quite a while, although he hadn't really seen him. Must have been a magic thing. Anyway, the man was standing right behind Lavender, Neville and Parvati, looking amused.  
  
"Thank you for the nice description" he said. "I get called that a lot. Weird, I mean" Towers said, smiling, as the two girls jumped and looked back, while Neville just gaped. "I will not take any house points, that would be unfair and nearly useless since everybody seems to be talking only about this and Sirius Black. So, since I don't want to reset the house points, I'll just pretend I haven't heard anything. But, please continue, I'm having the time of my life."  
  
"You. you." Lavender started.  
  
"What about me?" he asked, smiling a bit.  
  
"You."  
  
He sighed.  
  
"Well, I'll be heading for the Head Table; obviously my presence has stopped you from conversing freely. Gosh, shouldn't have talked."  
  
Harry stifled a laugh. Towers did have humor. And Sirius would be alright, hopefully.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Thursday and Friday passed by quickly, with Daily Prophet articles about Sirius's process. It seemed to have been a problem that the 'Azkaban escapee', as they called him now, was not really there, but a trial had been started and everything seemed to be going on alright.  
  
Amala was doing surprisingly well with Severus. Well, 'well' was a way to put it, since he was back to 'rock-hearted-ex-spy' stance. So, that meant that he wasn't so accepting, but it was still going well. Sort of. Anyway, Harry thought that Amala seemed to be happy. She told them they were back to talking, just that now he was actually saying more than 'uh huh' and 'yes'. He started wondering in how much time he would start acting like a normal boyfriend and how much patience Amala had left.  
  
The weekend passed just as quickly and they were all, Amala included, back to Towers' 'extra classes' as they called them now and he thought them spells and talked about his life experience -and that was quite fun and educational. Harry liked the story about him meeting a griffin and a dragon and getting scared to hell when they chased him through the forest. "And that means", the Professor said, "that you should never ever scream terrified when you find two magical creatures sitting one next to another in a clearing in a forest"- and even though he did have fun stories, he also seemed to have done everything he said he did -and some were great deeds- and when they asked him to retell a story, he always got the details right, so he was no Lockhart.  
  
However, on Tuesday they had the greatest surprise of all.  
  
The Daily Prophet brings you-  
  
Sirius Black, cleared of all charges  
  
The Daily Prophet has been informed that the trial for Sirius Black has ended yesterday night and the verdict was-innocent. Sirius Black himself came and talked to Towers, whom he greatly thanked. When asked what he would do first, as a free man, he answered: "I think I'll go to Hogwarts, Harry is there and he's my godson, after all".  
  
As odd as it may be, Sirius Black is indeed the godfather of famous Harry Potter. The now-freed man will now meet his godson for the first time and the Daily Prophet will be there to find out how this goes.  
  
......  
  
"Wow, Harry, he's cleared!" Amala said and hugged Harry who was near her.  
  
Ron and Hermione were sparkling with happiness, but more than half of the Great Hall didn't look too happy. In fact, they looked horror-stricken.  
  
"He's a murderer and he's coming here!" Hannah Abbot was saying, horrified.  
  
"He's not a murderer!" Harry cried over the table.  
  
"How would you know?!" she asked. "And, plus, he'll be coming here!"  
  
"I just know, alright?" Harry said, glaring.  
  
Hannah was about to shout something, when Dumbledore stood up and asked for silence.  
  
"Perhaps this is something the Daily Prophet should have said" he started explaining. "Mr. Black has really been cleared, there are no mistakes whatsoever and he is therefore innocent and not a murderer."  
  
Towers was smirking, Harry could see even from his place at the Gryffindor table.  
  
"So, there is no need to panic about his visit here."  
  
"What about the incidents three years ago?!" Seamus shouted.  
  
Dumbledore looked at him.  
  
"Good question, Mr. Finnigan. Sirius Black was indeed looking for Harry Potter."  
  
There were a few gasps through the Great Hall.  
  
"However not for the reason that you all suspect. He was not trying to kill Harry Potter, quite the contrary. You probably remember that he was trapped in the school for a night and then he told me about what had really happened and I must say I believed his version. He told me that he had seen Peter Pettigrew, in his rat form, in a picture and had decided to save Harry from the man that betrayed his father and mother."  
  
There were a few whispers through the Great Hall that were clearly stating that the whisperers did not agree.  
  
"How did he escape? From Azkaban. And Hogwarts." Asked somebody in Ravenclaw.  
  
"Ah, that is also a good question" Dumbledore said. "Unfortunately, this is classified information. I'm sorry."  
  
Towers seemed to ask Dumbledore something, because a small exchange of words happened between them and Dumbledore sat down and Towers sat up.  
  
"I know" he said "that many of you think that I'm crazy or weird or dark or anything in that area."  
  
Lavender blushed furiously and some laughed.  
  
"Now, I'm not saying that bothers me. I frankly and sincerely have great fun with it and, by all means, continue to do it, I'm really having the time of my life here!" he said, smiling widely. "But I will tell you this, no matter what kind of a weirdo I am, I think I did well to all of you by clearing Sirius Black. I just happened to have some very interesting pictures of Peter Pettigrew with a silver hand, you know, close to Death Eaters. I want you to welcome him here. He is a man who has been charged by betraying his best friend and his wife and then by killing a dozen Muggles and a wizard and spent twelve years in Azkaban for this, although he was framed. He has been through more things than many of you can imagine. He is going to come here and I'm sure that Harry and his friends will welcome him greatly. I want you all to follow his example."  
  
Towers sat down and Dumbledore didn't seem to rise again. Harry, Ron, Amala and Hermione were again dragged into pro and anti Sirius talks.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
The next day, the whole school was tensely awaiting the come of Sirius Black.  
  
And indeed, during breakfast, the doors of the Great Hall opened and Sirius appeared in the opening, looking happy.  
  
"Sirius!" Harry cried from his seat and the man saw him and went fast towards him. Needless to say the whole Great Hall was as silent as the grave, awaiting to see what would happen.  
  
"Harry!" he said and hugged the once small kid. "I've missed you!"  
  
"Missed you too!" Harry replied.  
  
Hermione had also gotten up from her seat.  
  
"Nice to see you again, Sirius!" she said, grinning and he hugged her too.  
  
Ron was also on his feet.  
  
"Hello!" he said simply and hugged him.  
  
"Ron" came the reply.  
  
Amala was last and she too was standing.  
  
"Hello, Sirius!" she said, grinning.  
  
"Hi and. thank you" he said and also hugged her.  
  
The Great Hall was still gaping. It was obvious the four knew the man and that they were friends.  
  
"But ho--?" asked Dean, shocked.  
  
"Well, Black, I see that, as always, you forgot good manners and ran off to meet your friends" came the cold voice of Severus Snape.  
  
"Snape" Sirius said, looking less happy.  
  
Dumbledore decided to interfere and asked Sirius to sit at the Head Table. The grinning just-cleared man did so and sat between Towers and Sprout.  
  
"Well, it is my great pleasure to introduce you to Sirius Black" Dumbledore said. "Not that you didn't know him, of course."  
  
It was the weirdest breakfast Harry had ever had in the Great Hall. Everybody was looking at him and Sirius weirdly and not many were speaking.  
  
However, after breakfast finished, Sirius came to see him at his table.  
  
"So, how've you been, kiddo?" he asked happily.  
  
"Great! Although I hated the way we parted" Harry replied.  
  
"And you?" Amala asked, grinning. "Last time I saw you, you looked quite as happy as you're now. "  
  
"I'm great!" he replied. "I've lived in a nice little place and waited for things to clear up."  
  
"Thanks for owling" Harry said.  
  
"No problem, kiddo" he replied. "So, has Snape given you a damned hard time?"  
  
"Yeah, as usual" Harry said after making sure he was still at the Head Table.  
  
Neville decided to pop up in the conversation.  
  
"So-how's it to be on the run like that?" he asked shyly.  
  
"Not too good, I can assure you" he replied. "But way better than being in Azkaban"  
  
Neville smiled.  
  
"How did you manage to escape?" he continued with the questions.  
  
"Personal secret" Sirius replied. "And you are-?"  
  
"Oh, I'm Neville Longbottom" he said.  
  
"Pleased to meet you, Neville" he said grinning.  
  
"And where did you hide all this time?" Dean asked, gathering his courage.  
  
"Also a personal secret" Sirius said and grinned.  
  
"Oh, I'm Dean" the boy said.  
  
"Pleased to meet you" the Animagus said.  
  
Soon, everybody gathered around him and started asking questions. It was a great sight, to see him genuinely happy and surrounded by all those students.  
  
"So, they've cleared you, eh, Black?" said a nasty voice behind him.  
  
Sirius turned and looked at the blonde boy standing in front of him.  
  
"Yes, they have" he said stiffening a little.  
  
"No wonder they have. You're not smart enough to be a Death Eater."  
  
"And this is Draco Malfoy" Harry said, glaring at the Slytherin.  
  
"Ah, Lucius' son" Sirius said, looking his age.  
  
"That's right" Draco continued and just as he opened his mouth to say something else, he was stopped by somebody behind him.  
  
"And ten points from Slytherin if you don't apologize for calling this intelligent enough to escape from Azkaban man stupid."  
  
Draco glared at the one who spoke, but realized whom he was-Towers. He paled a little.  
  
"Sorry" he mumbled.  
  
"No problem" Sirius said and Draco nodded at him and left. Once again, he was surrounded by people asking him one thing or another.  
  
Harry grinned at the sight and thought that the world was finally starting to go straight. Sirius soon forgot about the Malfoy incident and started chatting happily about one thing or another with everybody who wanted to talk to him. He laughed out straight when he found out that History of Magic was still taught by Binns.  
  
"I can't believe it!" he said. "He used to teach us a long time ago, too. Of course, then he wasn't a ghost. Don't you find it a bit weird that the History subject is taught by someone who is history?"  
  
Harry wondered how they got to that subject. Everybody seemed to be more and more ok with Sirius. Finally, the bell rang and they had to head for their classes. Hermione was grinning.  
  
"Wow, I can't believe they accepted him so easily!" she said. "And still - it's a bit weird, don't you think? I feel something odd's going on. And Malfoy. Did you see that?"  
  
"Yeah, he was such a git" Ron said.  
  
"No, that's not what I said." Hermione explained. "Did you see the note he passed to Sirius?"  
  
"What note?" Amala asked.  
  
"He passed a note, while insulting him" Hermione said.  
  
"I didn't see anything, Hermione" Harry said.  
  
"Me neither" Ron completed. "Why would Malfoy give a note to Sirius?"  
  
"Dunno. Yet." She said. "But I'll find out"  
  
Harry started to admire more and more the determined personality, intelligence and attentiveness his friend had. She was definitely going to find out about it, if she said so. Yeah. Hermione, the one who always studied hard and got top marks and who figured out the potion test in the first year and the basilisk in the second and Remus' secret in the third and Rita Skeeter in the fourth and. well, she did find out a lot of things. Definitely. She probably was Einstein reincarnated. Harry laughed at the thought, but nobody noticed since they were already in class.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Somewhere in a wood, there was a cloaked figure, shining under the full moon. It seemed he was awaiting something. Another person appeared, a tall man with no cloak and with blue eyes.  
  
"How are you, sire?" the new-arrived man asked.  
  
"Fine, thank you. And will you please stop calling me that?"  
  
"Sign of respect" the blue eyed man answered.  
  
The other laughed.  
  
"Voldemort has to torture for such a thing, I can hardly convince you not to call me that, can't I?"  
  
"Well, you are my."  
  
"Don't say it." The man said, looking at the moon. "There is really no difference between the teacher and the student once the last is on his way. The teacher can only watch over his protégée while he is weaker than his teacher, ain't I right?"  
  
"Yes, you are" the blue eyed man said. "Why is it that you've called me here?"  
  
"Watch over him" the other man replied. "Watch over him, I can't hold Voldemort back much longer. He will strike and Harry needs you."  
  
The blue eyed man nodded and then decided to ask something.  
  
"But can't you? You have enough power." he said slowly.  
  
"It's not about power" the cloaked man said. "It's about what I am allowed and what I'm not allowed to do."  
  
"I see"  
  
"I guess I could. But then something might go wrong and instead of doing right, I might do wrong. Future, destiny, are tricky things. Do you know about the third year Harry Potter had? He saved his godfather by using a time turner. You see, he didn't know it then, but it was destined for him to do that. It was however not meant for Sirius Black to die."  
  
"That's why he's alive" the blue eyed man whispered.  
  
"Correct. You know, many people are very sorry for Harry Potter not having parents and wished he did. But then, the world would be a lot worse. Voldemort fell because of his mother's death and without that, the wizarding and Muggle world would never be the same. It is meant for this to be as it is. If I were to change the destiny by protecting Harry now, I might do a great deal of bad. No, I won't do it. But I want you to watch over him, Jack. Watch over him."  
  
Jack nodded.  
  
"I will."  
  
"Now, go back before anybody sees that you are missing."  
  
Jack bowed and left, leaving the other man alone. When he disappeared with a pop, the man whispered:  
  
"I'm so sorry, Harry"  
  
Then, he looked again at the moon and his body started melting and turning into light, silver moonlight, to be exact. Soon, there was nobody left in the wood. Hundreds of miles away, a certain Harry Potter was waking up from a dream.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Wow! FINISHED! And now, my friends, I remember why I actually wrote this all in one chapter. Because of my own little author note at the end of my last chap. Else I would've kept Sirius' return for myself for a bit longer.  
  
I'm eager to post this, so if I double check it and something turns out wrong, then I'll just change it and replace it, ok? But I don't think I will.  
  
So, review and tell me what you think!  
  
And thanks to the ones who've reviewed since my last post!  
  
The Red Dragons Order: Towers is gonna be baaack and Jane Chase won't wait long until she joins the action fully-forced. -Mind you, I haven't planned it and I'm still working on her coming in the story-. Oh, and there's a little something. May I remind you?  
  
"::chuckle:: annoying isn't it, when people (or deamons in this case) do that to you, heh? ::rubs hands evilly:: now, for me sweet revenge...  
  
...  
  
...  
  
...  
  
I'll figure it out soon enough.  
  
...  
  
...  
  
...  
  
One moment, please.  
  
...  
  
...  
  
...  
  
While we're at it, update soon!  
  
...  
  
...  
  
...  
  
And thanks for Jane Chase.  
  
...  
  
...  
  
...  
  
I think I'm getting there. I'll get back to you.  
  
...  
  
...  
  
..."  
  
That was a looong time ago. Chapter 6. And my reply.  
  
"You're going to have your sweet revenge, eh? Can't wait for it!!! You update soon too. Oh, and the rest of my little fic about the unfortunate review is going to be posted on King Akvar's account. You're welcomed for Jane Chase."  
  
And next.  
  
"Mate, I'm The Red Dragons Order, savvy? Of course I'm going to get my revenge! ...  
  
Sorry about that, Jack Sparrow moment. Yes, indeed, that fic is highly interesting, my dear Watson. I really cannot wait to see what happens next, just plain elementary Doctor Watson... AH, Sherlock Holmes moment as well! Oh, the HORROR!  
  
Anyways, update soon and I really cannot wait to see what happens in both this and the other story. To quote myself: This is going to be amusing as hell!"  
  
Well, I'm still curious how you're gonna have your revenge. *sniffs* Have you forgotten me? He, he!  
  
Attado de lengua: Yes, I know she reviewed chapters 4 and 5, but I think a thank you written over here will do. Well, I'm glad you like it and I couldn't see Percy just coming in and apologizing either, so. And I'm glad you like Amala! And don't forget to review!  
  
Babyjayy: Thank you. I did.  
  
Balleke: No comment on that one.  
  
Naomie: Thank you! And look, Sirius is back, so. Hope you enjoyed it!!!  
  
Well, I'm done with this and sorry if you consider the reviews short. The length of the chapter will just have to deal with that, I suppose.  
  
So, READ AND REVIEW! Read and review! READ AND REVIEW! Read and review!  
  
And since you probably read to get to this part. REVIEW! REVIEW!  
  
*chuckle* See ya soon! 


	16. Again Towers

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the other characters. They all belong to the empress of all authors, the queen of literature, and the goddess of all things that have to do with HP books.. J.K Rowling! The only thing I own in this story is the plot, and any characters you don't recognize.  
  
Hell, I don't even own the Disclaimer, it belongs to Potter/Pikachu. But it sounded funny to write the Disclaimer's disclaimer, so why not?!  
  
Chapter 16: Again Towers  
  
Towers sighed.  
  
"Have you ever written something like this as homework?" he asked. "I wasn't asking for facts, I was asking for imagination. These essays are ok, but you should try to think 'what if', not 'how is it'. Now, some of our dear Slytherins have done a very nice work."  
  
They were again in the Defence class. And Towers had corrected their essays on love and magic that could not be done and brought them back, graded.  
  
Right now, the Slytherins congratulated each other and the Gryffindors groaned.  
  
"Especially if" Towers continued "you want the same essay over and over again, with the same lack of imagination. Congratulations, Slytherins! You just lost 30 points from your house. Warned ya not to cheat!" he said with a mischievous glint in his eyes.  
  
The Slytherins lost their happiness and glared at the Professor and the Gryffindors lifted their heads and smiled.  
  
"Now, there were a few good essays. Mostly Gryffindor ones, but also a Slytherin one, so I'll start with that. 5 points for Slytherin, due to the work of Draco Malfoy!"  
  
The Slytherins cheered the blond boy and he went to take his paper.  
  
"Good one, indeed, although not exactly what I asked. He has proved, however, that love can also draw a person back. We'll talk about that later. Now, for the Gryffindors!"  
  
The ones in that house cheered.  
  
"First, Neville Longbottom! Very good work, my boy! 5 points to Gryffindor!" Neville went and took his paper. Somehow, it all turned a bit festive, as if they were getting prizes. "Also, 5 points to Lavender Brown. Again, not exactly what I had in mind, but a good essay nevertheless. 5 points for Ron Weasley. Good topic you chose, the love within a family. 5 points to Hermione Granger. Best research I had on the topic. I wonder why. Harry Potter, again 5 points for this good adaptation over your own life. And for Amala Wright, also 5 points."  
  
So, 30 points for Gryffindor! Not bad, was it? Towers gave the others their parchments also and then sat on the teacher's desk. Was that normal?!  
  
"So, I've been presented with interesting spells that can't be done: a spell that brings people back from the dead, one that shields against the Avada Kedavra, one that turns the pain in the Cruciatus in happiness, or pleasure, one that can be cast against the Veritaserum -actually, there is one that can do that, but it was a good idea-, one that can destroy a human being, one that can enslave another, one that can determine a certain Quiddich team to win" -he chuckled-, "one that can create portals between different worlds."  
  
He stopped and looked at them.  
  
"Many were said. And what makes you think they aren't all possible?"  
  
The classroom was quiet. And then Hermione raised her arm.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"The fact that it was never done"  
  
"So it was said that nobody can ever travel through time, that nobody can ever survive the Avada Kedavra, that nobody can overcome the Imperius.And yet they have all been done. What makes you think that you can't do all the others?"  
  
Nobody answered.  
  
"Everything is possible. You can do anything if you have enough power, remember that, young ones."  
  
They all stared at him. Was he crazy or something? Those things weren't possible. There was no way to bring back people from the dead. was there?  
  
The bell rang and Towers said in a way louder voice than before:  
  
"No homework for next class!" Then, he added towards Amala: "I would like to talk to you."  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione started going with her, but he said, in a stern way:  
  
"Only you"  
  
They understood and left, leaving the girl looking a bit scared behind them.  
  
Later, when they made it to the next class, she appeared and told them that all Towers wanted was to tell her that she should train her psychic skills and trust her intuition.  
  
"He's a weird one" she said, slowly.  
  
"Can't disagree with you there" Ron replied.  
  
"And I wonder how he knew. I never told anybody except you and my parents about my gift."  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Amala had her last detention with Severus that evening. Her last detention. During the previous ones, they'd become closer to each other. In a weird way, but they had. And since Sirius had gone back to Grimmauld Place the day before, there was nobody to piss Severus off all the time. In fact, it had been quite funny. Sirius had gone around the school, doing pranks and playing the responsible adult when somebody came by and avoided Severus. It was amazing how Sirius could act so childish and then suddenly mature. He was childish when talking to Harry, or planning pranks, but when it came to Severus, he acted mature. Especially when it came to the 'Harry issue' -"If I ever catch you doing something bad to him, Severus, I'll make sure I go to Azkaban again and this time for a good reason"-.  
  
She knocked on the door and heard the dark voice saying 'come in'. She entered and saw him sitting at the desk, correcting papers.  
  
"Hello", she said.  
  
"Hello" he replied and let his feather down and even tried to smile. Well, tried.  
  
"So, having fun?" she asked, looking at the papers.  
  
"You have no idea" he muttered darkly. "Tell your fifth year housemates that they are idiots and can't get anything right and that even a first year Slytherin could do what they can't do in their fifth year."  
  
"So, I'll tell them" she said and chuckled "that unlike the Slytherins, who are born with the gift of potion-making, they aren't, and better start studying or the Potion Master will, as always, collect house points from them."  
  
Severus looked at her, a bit amused.  
  
"No, I really meant exactly what I said."  
  
"I just translated" she said innocently.  
  
He glared at her, but lost the glare when she came closer to him and put her hand over his.  
  
"You don't mind, do you?" she asked and Severus was wondering if it was about the translation or her hand. He decided it was about the translation.  
  
He didn't answer, but pulled her down on his knees. Better.  
  
"What if I do?"  
  
She just smiled and pushed her head forwards, to meet his lips with hers. She kept wondering how he got to be the great kisser he was when he acted so horribly towards everybody and probably wasn't too experienced. But then again, she didn't care.  
  
His hand went slowly on her back, pulling her closer to him. He felt great in control and she was abandoning herself to him.  
  
And then, just then, when she was feeling so good, the door had to open. They pulled back, quickly and looked at the person who dared enter. Well, she looked. Severus glared his worst glare at the unfortunate blond boy, with the silver serpent attached to his robes. Draco Malfoy.  
  
"Wha-? Professor? Wright?" he asked, shocked and disbelieving.  
  
"One word to anybody, Mr. Malfoy, and I'll make sure that something dreadful will happen to you." Severus said. "Like make you tell all your deepest secrets to the school and then feeding you to the giant squid."  
  
He wasn't at his usual insult-height, but Draco stood there in shock, gaping, until he finally managed to say an  
  
"Um. No, of course not Professor. Nobody will hear."  
  
Amala waited for him to leave, which he did, stumbling.  
  
"So, I guess I should leave" she said. "See you later?" Gods, she felt weird.  
  
"Yeah" Severus replied and she got up and tried to smile.  
  
"Good night, Severus" she said and went towards the door.  
  
"Good night. Amala" he answered.  
  
She got out the door, wondering how they would see each other later in the future, under what excuses... And then she regretted she had left so early.  
  
"So, Wright, is this how you get good grades in Potions? Snog-"  
  
"Shut up, Malfoy!" she said in a pretty mad tone.  
  
"Well, you must admit it's pretty incriminating."  
  
"Malfoy, I warn you."  
  
He laughed. Obviously, he had gotten over his shocked state.  
  
"Warn me that what? Your curses and hexes are bad enough for me not to care. What will you do?"  
  
"Malfoy!" she said, in a warning and slow tone.  
  
"How does he kiss? Bad, I suppose. And how can you stand the slime in his hair? I."  
  
She suddenly took out her wand and pointed it at his heart.  
  
"One more word, Draco Malfoy and I will have you hexed, yes, with my bad hexes!" she warned in a peculiar voice, lower and more vibrant, somewhat inhuman. He stared at her in shock. Why did her eyes burn like that? Not good.  
  
"Let me see you dare!" he said, braver than he felt.  
  
She flicked her wand a little and started saying something he couldn't understand. But before the movement was done, or the incantation finished, a cry could be heard:  
  
"Accio!"  
  
Her wand flew out of her hand and she followed it with her eyes, as it landed neatly in the hand of a Professor. Towers, to be exact.  
  
"Why do people duel on the halls?" he asked. "And why does a girl attack a defenseless boy?"  
  
She just glared at him and then at Draco.  
  
"Both of you, in my office, now!" he said and stormed in front of them and they reluctantly followed.  
  
Not even ten minutes later, they were in his office.  
  
"Now, Malfoy, what have told you about insulting people?" Towers asked upset and Amala nearly gaped at the scene. Draco let his head down and said in a very guilty tone:  
  
"Not to"  
  
"Correct. And what did you do?" asked Towers.  
  
"Insulted her" Draco said, in an even guiltier voice. Since when was guilt between Malfoy's emotions? Hmmm.  
  
"What did I say I would do if you kept doing that?"  
  
"Take fifty points from Slytherin."  
  
"Correct. But I also said that if the insulted person forgives you, I wouldn't do it. Well?"  
  
Draco looked at him and sighed and turned to Amala, who was surprised by all this.  
  
"I'm sorry" he said. "It's just the old me, always sneering."  
  
She stared at him. Now, something was wrong. Why did he actually seem sorry? Was it normal? And what did he mean by 'the old me'?  
  
"It's ok" she answered and he looked at her surprised. It was?!  
  
"And Amala. I was expecting more of you" Towers said and looked at her full of reproach. "What could he possibly insult to make you hex him, although he had no wand?"  
  
She looked in the ground.  
  
"It was more of a whom", she replied.  
  
"What do you mean a who-" Towers started and then his eyes widened. "Oh. I. Hmm. I'm starting to understand the circumstances. So, Malfoy, you caught her with Severus, haven't you?" he asked casually and both of them looked at him in shock. "Yeah, I know. I put two and two together. You have no idea how much you can see as an insomniac. And Severus was acting weird. Weirder than usual, I mean. "  
  
Amala paled and Draco looked from one to another.  
  
"Snape's gonna have my head for telling you, although I didn't" he said.  
  
"Severus knows that I know, so you needn't worry about that. Free to go, Draco."  
  
The blond boy left and Towers turned to her.  
  
"Don't worry, I haven't seen anything. I just happened to catch Severus under Veritaserum" Towers said. "And he spat out your story. Listen, Amala, keep your temper. I know it's difficult. Now, since nothing technically happened, I'll let you go with no points taken, but please control yourself."  
  
She exited and looked around for the Slytherin, but he was gone.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
They were again in the secret chamber they had found, researching -Hermione and Amala- and doing homework-Ron and Harry-.It was a nice place, very quiet and comfy. From time to time, Hermione read out passages from books. This was the case now.  
  
"Multimagus: Animagus with more than one shape. Very rare, since the transformation is very difficult."  
  
"Whoa, I didn't even know they existed!" Amala said excitedly.  
  
"Yeah, and it says here about a man who could transform in anything, real quick!" Hermione said, grinning. "I didn't know that. And there was another who could do the same, but loved birds way more and was said that could even talk to them."  
  
"Cool!" Ron said. "Wish I was a Multimagus."  
  
"You could be" Hermione said "but it's dead difficult to become even an Animagus, never mind the pain, so a Multimagus would be just."  
  
"I was daydreaming, Hermione" Ron said, exasperated and Harry chuckled.  
  
"Oh" came the reply from Hermione. "We should go back to the common room and all. You know, the curfew thing..." she added when she saw that none understood why.  
  
The others nodded and Amala said the password ('light warriors') and the wall opened and they started going towards their tower.  
  
The castle was starting to go silent, few passed the halls. They soon made it to the portrait and gave the password ('Phoenix') and entered the common room.  
  
They all chatted a bit and then parted and went towards their dormitories. Harry collapsed on the bed and fell asleep almost instantly, feeling quite tired.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
A snake slithered towards him and hissed:  
  
*-Masssster, Towersss isss ssstil alive, Masssssster-*  
  
*-I know, Nagini-* Harry hissed himself. *-Ssssomething will happen ssssoon enough. How ssslow can the Minisssstry be?-*  
  
*-They ssssay that Towersss helped too much, he can't be bad. And they don't have enough evidencssse-*  
  
Harry felt anger going through him.  
  
*-Not enough evidencsse?-* He asked, quickly *-What more evidencse can they want? I ssserved it on a sssilver platter-*  
  
*-They sssay it might have been sssomeone elssse-*  
  
*-Sssomeone elssse?-* Harry asked. *-Ssstupid Fudge. And do you know what happened to my connection to Potter?-*  
  
*-No, Massster-* Nagini hissed.  
  
*-Neither do I. I almossst got him and now he sssseemss to have gotten away. Ssssomething'ssss blocking me, Nagini. Although it'sss fading away.-*  
  
*-Try again, Masssster-*  
  
*-I will-* Harry hissed.  
  
Suddenly, Harry widened his eyes, but they didn't feel like his any more.  
  
*-Nagini!-* Voldemort hissed *-He'sssss here, Nagini! He'sssss here!-*  
  
Harry suddenly remembered Dumbledore's advice 'concentrate on your heart' and did that and thought of his mum and dad and friends.  
  
"No!" Voldemort cried.  
  
Suddenly, Harry was pulled out of there and he found himself in his bed, screaming in pain from his scar.  
  
"Harry! You ok, mate?" Ron asked, worryingly.  
  
"Dumbledore!" Harry said. "I must go to Dumbledore!"  
  
He jumped out of bed, a part of him still in pain and rushed out in his boxers.  
  
"Robe, mate!" Ron cried and Harry turned back and threw one on him and then ran out.  
  
He ran through the castle and got to Dumbledore's office.  
  
"Um, donuts?" Harry asked, but the gargoyle didn't move. What a time to find out that Dumbledore had changed the password! "Cherry pie? Cluster pie? Cockroach pie? Sherbet lemon? Smarties? Chocolate? Candy? Help! Ice Mice! Sugar Quills! Please, let me in! I need to speak to him urgently!"  
  
However, the gargoyle didn't move. But a silhouette nearby did.  
  
"Mr. Potter, what are you doing here at this time of night?" he heard a voice and turned towards it. It was Minerva McGonagall.  
  
"I really have to get to Professor Dumbledore, but I don't know the password."  
  
She looked at the desperate boy and said towards the gargoyle:  
  
"Pumpkin pie"  
  
Harry could have slapped himself. Why didn't he think of that? But no time for that, he just ran up to Dumbledore's office, not caring about the cry of 'Potter, slow down' from below. He got to the door and opened it.  
  
"Professor!" he cried. "I had another dream, Professor! And I knew I was there, I realized it and Voldemort knew I was there too and."  
  
"Slow down, my boy" Dumbledore said.  
  
"Professor, he wants Towers dead and he'll."  
  
"I know he wants me dead" said a voice from a person Harry didn't see before. Towers. "Exactly what I was saying to Albus, actually. He wants me dead. I think I should quit my job as a teacher and go back where I came from. So, what's this about the dream?"  
  
Harry sighed and started to tell the story. He talked for a short while and then Dumbledore sighed and said:  
  
"Then, he might be coming in your dreams even more, if a barrier was destroyed. I just wonder what kind of a barrier it was."  
  
Harry looked at Towers and an older dream came back to his mind.  
  
"You know. You know about the barrier" he said. "Who was the man who told you that he can't hold back Voldemort anymore and who told you to watch me?"  
  
Towers looked at him, wide-eyed.  
  
"You were there, then! He let you witness! He was my Master, Harry. My Master, the one whom I always talk about, the one who has enough power to keep many people safe"  
  
Harry looked at him surprised.  
  
"He appeared in my dreams. He did that twice now. Once he was talking to me, the other he was with you. I had no idea he was your Master."  
  
Dumbledore was watching them with curiosity.  
  
"What's this about?" he asked.  
  
"His Master appeared in my dreams once and talked to me and then I saw him and Professor Towers together talking about something. But it wasn't as it is with Voldemort, he was talking to me and I knew I was myself."  
  
"Interesting" Dumbledore said. "Care to explain, Jack?"  
  
The other man nodded.  
  
"My Master is, as I've said so many times, very powerful. He helped keep away Voldemort from Harry for a while, to help, but now he isn't allowed to do that anymore."  
  
"Why isn't he allowed to do it?" Harry asked.  
  
"I frankly don't know" Towers said. "He isn't allowed because his own Master doesn't allow him to, but I don't know the purpose."  
  
"Your Master has a Master?" Harry asked.  
  
"Yes, you could say that."  
  
"And who is he?"  
  
Towers looked at Dumbledore.  
  
"The one who is the Master of everybody, in the end. But the problem isn't Masters here, but you. So, Voldemort started dragging you into his world again, eh? Resist, Harry. That's all I can say. Resist until you can face him and until all will be ready."  
  
"Until all what will be ready?" Harry asked.  
  
"You, my boy, will have to face Voldemort sometime. And when you do and it will be the battle, then either you or Voldemort will be vanquished. And of course the light forces want to help. Until then, though, some are going to protect you from the Dark Bastard. Dumbledore is one of those, I am another. Have you ever wondered why I keep popping up? Besides not having to sleep more than two or three hours a night, which makes me wonder around the castle a lot, I also get orders, or rather suggestions, from my Master who guides me in helping you. He said that it is most probable that I will be there for you in a battle before you're ready."  
  
Dumbledore looked at him curiously, but didn't say anything.  
  
"You'll be there?" Harry asked.  
  
"I will, although I've no idea how, all the things he tells me are said in such a way that they have multiple meaning. But one thing's for sure: if you need me, I'll be there."  
  
"You will?"  
  
"Yes, you can count on that. Even if the Ministry is going to get me, I'll manage and that's a promise."  
  
"Oh, right!" Harry said, realizing he had forgotten his point. "Voldemort was mad with the ministry because they wouldn't believe the evidence he was showing them about Towers. What about it?"  
  
"We made some of it disappear" Dumbledore explained and Harry raised his eyebrows.  
  
"Anyway, he also said something about a block that kept him away from me, but which was fading. And then he. he realized I was there. And I realized I wasn't him. I remembered the advice of concentrating on my heart, Professor Dumbledore, and I did that. He just cried 'no' and I woke up."  
  
Harry stopped and Dumbledore and Towers looked at each other.  
  
"It means it does have an effect on him" Towers said and Dumbledore nodded.  
  
"Go back to bed, Harry. We'll think of something" the Headmaster said and Harry went back to his tower.  
  
As he walked down the corridors, he started feeling angry with everything. Why did all have to happen to him? Why did Voldemort appear in his dreams? Why was he the one who had to defeat Voldemort? Why couldn't he just be normal?  
  
And Towers and Dumbledore! They knew something and they didn't want to tell him! They were going to think about something! Why them? Why not him, too? It wasn't Towers or Dumbledore Voldemort wanted to get, it was him -oh, wait, Voldemort did want to get them, especially Towers, but this was about him, Harry, and not Towers! And they were going to think of something, while he just got into Voldemort's head!  
  
And now, he was sent to bed, like a small kid, with no problems. 'Got to bed, Harry', do this, Harry, do that Harry. Always Harry! And now he was kicked out of the office where they were discussing his matter.  
  
"Couldn't sleep either, Harry?" asked somebody.  
  
"No" he lied and looked at the person in front of him. She had, as usual, a weird appearance: the wand behind her ear, half closed eyes, a night robe with some kind of fairies on it. "Neither can you, Luna?"  
  
"No." she replied dreamily. "Want to join me to the North Tower?"  
  
The North Tower! But that was where couples went.  
  
"Well, um."  
  
"It's a great place to sit when you have problems sleeping" she said. "I go there a lot and sit there by myself. Sometimes I could use company. Would you like to come?"  
  
Harry nodded, thinking it couldn't do too much harm and he couldn't sleep anymore anyway. Not that he would want to, either.  
  
They made their way to the North Tower and Harry was surprised they hadn't run into Filch. They climbed all the way to the top of the tower and finally made it outside, on top of the castle.  
  
"It's beautiful here" Harry said, taking a deep breath.  
  
"Yes, it is" Luna said and sat down on the rock. "Good luck this castle doesn't have any Swedish Rock Palm-Sized Pixies."  
  
Harry realized that those were probably imaginary creatures, but asked kindly:  
  
"And what are Swedish Rock Palm-Sized Pixies?"  
  
She looked dreamily at him.  
  
"They're pixies who live in the stones of old castles, destroying them from the inside and if they can, they even steel shiny things from the inhabitants of the castle. Many people don't believe they exist."  
  
They just stood there for a while and then Harry asked:  
  
"And how's the Quibbler going?"  
  
"Very well" she answered. "Ever since that story you said was proven right, people started buying it even more. My dad's very pleased."  
  
"I'm glad" Harry said and looked at the stars. He never was too good at Astronomy, but he had to admit that it was good to watch the stars and name them in your mind, sitting next to somebody who doesn't ask you what, where, when and who's not obsessed with you.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Harry got back to his common room in the morning and took on some more appropriate robes and some clothes under them -he had no idea how come he hadn't frozen last night. Then, he, Ron, Hermione, Amala, Ginny, Neville and the others who were supposed to go to Towers' private lessons got in one big group and went to his office.  
  
And, boy, did they have a shock!  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
There! Another chapter and I'm working on the next. Hope ya liked it! And hope it explains why Towers is always around: he's watching Harry. More of Sirius in the next chapter.  
  
Well, sorry I'm not posting as much as I used to, but school's killing me and I've got a personal project on the move.  
  
And now, to my favorite part: replying to reviewers:  
  
The Red Dragons Order: Whoa, that's one looong review, mate. Not that I'd mind. Thank you!  
  
Babyjayy: Thanks! And, as one of the characters which I most like in a book, I ask: what does soon mean? It could mean 5 minutes to one and one year to another. ;-)  
  
Iniysa: I updated.  
  
Skillz: Thank you! I hope you still like it! 


	17. Snakes And Dogs

Disclaimer: And the reason for which I don't own Harry Potter is that I've no idea what happens in the next books and my name ain't J.K. Rowling. So, don't sue!  
  
Dedication: I forgot this for a while -sorry-. Dedicated to the Red Dragons Order, the one who brought me to this site and whose stories I love.  
  
Author's Note: Aw, look how short it came out. Well, the next one might be longer. Might.  
  
Chapter 17: Snakes and Dogs  
  
The group of students who usually went to Towers' special classes gaped when they saw who was in there. A blond boy was sitting on a chair behind the first desk of the classroom, looking over some papers under the careful eye of the Defence Professor.  
  
The blond boy was known to all of them and the silver snake attached to his robes showed his personality exactly.  
  
"Ah, nice to see you!" Towers said. "I do believe you know Draco Malfoy, don't you?"  
  
"Yes, Professor. What is he doing here?" asked Harry, but his words were covered by Ron's.  
  
"No way that idiot will be here with us!"  
  
"Five points from Gryffindor, Mr. Weasley" said Towers, looking a bit unpleased. "Draco is here exactly for the same reason you are and under my invitation, such as yourselves, may I remind you."  
  
"But why?" Hermione asked. "He doesn't get well with any of us and he'll just use any chance he has to betray us."  
  
"Not necessarily" Towers replied. "His father and not him was a Death Eater. I believe he is just as ok as any of you, once he gets rid of his father's ideas. Now, you will accept him here, since you all said it would be alright for me to as whomever I want."  
  
"Yes, Professor" Hermione answered and Ron just looked annoyed at the boy. Harry felt quite weird. He somehow trusted Towers and Towers trusted Draco and Draco would now be with them, but he also distrusted and despised the Slytherin. And what if Draco turned against them and told Voldemort about. about what, exactly? Anyway, Draco was not to be trusted or befriended with.  
  
"Now, there is something I'd like to show all of you" Towers said and went to his desk, opened a drawer and removed a book. Hermione looked curiously towards it. "It's called the Book of Kings and my Master gave it to me so that I can show you this."  
  
While the others were wondering why on Earth he always talked about his Master, he placed the book on the teacher's desk and everybody moved close to see what it was. Towers was searching through it, trying to find the thing he wanted.  
  
"Ah, here it is!" he said and pointed to a page with a large picture on it. The picture was still and it showed a king on his throne. He looked like a king, alright. He looked tall and powerful and had a sword. "He was a wizard, but he had a weird kind of power: wand less magic, like moving objects or turning on fire. Not too much of the hexes or curses, though. I do believe he didn't like wands."  
  
He took out his own wand and pointed it at the book.  
  
"Show me" he said and the picture started moving. It even had sound. It was like a Muggle TV, only book-sized.  
  
The king stood up and started pacing in front of his throne.  
  
"I wish I knew what will happen" he said to a person they couldn't yet see.  
  
"No one knows what will happen. Just Seers get sometimes to see part of possible futures" a female voice said.  
  
"I know. Gryffindor said, however, that he might help us. He said that he and Slytherin have come up with a plan which they hope will work."  
  
"What plan milord?" the voice asked and a woman appeared in the picture. She had beautiful brown eyes and hair and a kind face, but a warrior-type look to counter the kindness. Towers didn't make any comment.  
  
"He said that he'll find Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw and ask them to help build a school."  
  
"How will a school help us?"  
  
"It will provide well-trained wizards every year. They said they're thinking about how to teach and everything."  
  
"It's great then! But tell me, is this Hufflepuff trustable? I know Gryffindor's on our side since always and Slytherin's alright, he's unbreakable from Gryffindor and I know Ravenclaw personally, but how's Hufflepuff?"  
  
The ones outside the book gaped. Slytherin? Unbreakable from Gryffindor? Trustable? On their side? But the action continued.  
  
"She's a wonderful, working, loving woman. She's the type of a person who'd never betray anybody. The perfect friend."  
  
"Then, it will be wonderful!" she said and smiled. "This war will be going nowhere for our dearest enemies."  
  
"Stop" Towers said, pointing his wand at the book. "This was the part that interested us. Have any questions?"  
  
"Damn right we do!" Draco said. "What's up with this Gryffindor-Slytherin friendship?"  
  
Towers smiled.  
  
"I knew you'd ask of that. Well, you see, at the beginning, good old Gryffindor was a good friend of Slytherin's. Godric and Salazar, the brave and the cunning, always together in the perfect team."  
  
"Perfect team?!" came the voices of Ron and Draco in the same time. "But what about the Chamber of Secrets?" asked Draco.  
  
"That was many years after." Towers replied. "But until then, they were well known as great friends. As were Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. And together they built this wonderful school, each of them taking whatever students they liked. Hufflepuff took all those who weren't correspondent to any group."  
  
"So, she took all the stupid cowards" said Draco and Towers chuckled.  
  
"No, she took the friendly and easily trusting, good and hard working kids" he said.  
  
"What did they say about the war?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Ah, ever the clever and attentive one, aren't you? Well, there was a war about to begin right about then, but it never did and nobody knows why. Maybe the enemy got scared of Hogwarts? We might never know."  
  
Towers paused and looked at all of them and smiled.  
  
"I know that the friendship between the houses can be restored again, even after one thousand years. I trust that it will be possible to do now."  
  
"Slim chance!" Draco said and glared at the others. Towers just sighed and sat on a desk, looking a bit despaired.  
  
"Of course, I think it might take a while."  
  
Amala started laughing and the others stared at her.  
  
"I'm sorry" she said. "It's just that. I don't know."  
  
"It's ok" the Professor said then gave them an enthusiastic smile. "So, how about we practice some defence against hexes today?"  
  
The others all looked at each other. They all knew what that meant: Towers would cast hexes at them and they'd have to watch out and counter them. Which was really, really, really difficult due to the speed of the man. Yep, they all knew what it meant to laugh your head off because you couldn't duck in time or to have your face covered in boils. Or even worse! You could get yourself spitting slugs. In less then one second, they all agreed on an answer:  
  
"NOOO!"  
  
The Professor just laughed.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Later, in the Gryffindor common room, there were three people talking to the fire. Well, not exactly to the fire itself, but the head in it.  
  
"So, how are you, kiddo?" the head asked.  
  
"Fine. How's everything, Sirius?"  
  
"It's serious" Sirius answered and noticed nobody laughed. "You people don't appreciate a good joke!"  
  
"Yes we do. The first ten times" a bushy-haired girl answered.  
  
"Or maybe even twenty" a green eyed boy added.  
  
"Thirty would be ok with me" a red haired boy answered.  
  
"But this must be the one hundredth time" the green eyed boy answered.  
  
"No, it can't be!" Sirius said. "Come on Harry!"  
  
"Actually I think it is" the red haired said.  
  
"Ron! Come on."  
  
"They might be right." the girl said.  
  
"Not you too, Hermione!" Sirius said. "Come on, I used to hear a lot of Sirius-serious jokes in my time!"  
  
"Never mind that" Hermione said. "Come on, Sirius, tell us about how it's all going at your place."  
  
Sirius sighed.  
  
"Alright, alright. So, everything's calm. Too calm, if I may say so"  
  
'The calm before the storm' Harry thought. Now why did he think that? Oh, yeah, because that was what Sirius's face was showing. It was a pity that they couldn't talk freely, but no other Gryffindors knew of Sirius being in the Order or anything, so they had to speak in codes. Actually, the others were quite few, but still.  
  
"We have a problem with a rat" Sirius said. "He disappeared and we're afraid he'll eat a big part of our food."  
  
Harry stared at Sirius. What did that have to do with anyth- oh. Pettigrew.  
  
"And the rat's master hasn't shown his face around. Weird, I thought he would by now. Sits in his room and does nothing. I wonder if he knows what his rat's doing."  
  
Greaaat. Harry had to decipher every word. What could be better? His stomach groaned again and he felt sorry they had missed dinner. Well, they had went to that room again and read. But he should go to the kitchens.  
  
"And we feel that the rat will set his fellows free" Sirius continued and, for one reason or another, Hermione glared at him. "And Albus got us a new flower! A wonderful flower, a rose, a very rare rose"  
  
Harry stared at him. What the-? What on Earth did flowers have to do with anything?! Or, was it a code? Maybe. But what flower? Maybe a potion flower? No. Maybe Neville would know. Meanwhile, Sirius kept babbling about the flower.  
  
"Quite a beautiful flower" Sirius continued. "And it's going to help us."  
  
Oh, well, he could always catch up later.  
  
"And how's school?"  
  
"Great" Harry said. "Have anything on Towers?"  
  
"No, and neither do I have anything on roofs either" Sirius replied and Hermione turned to glare at Harry. "But I might have something on dungeons."  
  
Roofs? Dungeons? Huh?  
  
"Well, gotta go! See you in two or three days!" Sirius said and disappeared.  
  
Hermione turned to the others.  
  
"Ron, could I please see that thing Sirius gave you?" she asked.  
  
"What thing? Hermione, Sirius didn't give me anything." Ron said and then realization dawned on his face.  
  
"Look, look, Ron can't tell what his girlfriend means. Boy, Ron, are you thick!" Seamus said.  
  
Harry turned to the two of them who looked at Seamus, Ron's ears red.  
  
"She's not my girlfriend" he answered.  
  
"No wonder she isn't" Seamus turned it. "You couldn't tell if she liked you if she came up to you and kissed you in an empty classroom. Even Snape must be brighter than that when it comes up to girlfriends!"  
  
Amala started laughing, turning slightly red.  
  
"Snape. girlfriend" she said when Seamus stared at her. "Come on, where do you get those?"  
  
"Um. yeah." the boy answered and Amala blessed the fact that she was considered sometimes weird for laughing at strange times and at half-jokes.  
  
Harry turned around to see that Hermione had gone and he himself made his way to the dormitories, where he found her. Soon enough, Ron and Amala came upstairs.  
  
"Did you hear that?!" Amala said. "Is he at Divination?"  
  
"Yes, he is, but that doesn't mean he knows something about it" Ron said.  
  
"Harry, I can't believe you said that" Hermione said, a bit more serious.  
  
"Said what?"  
  
"Asked about Towers!" she said, in a high-pitched tone.  
  
"What about it?"  
  
"Why would he have any information on Towers, when he's a freshly-cleared criminal?"  
  
"Well, he could. he could. He could know him from before!"  
  
"No way, Harry! You made it quite clear he was researching something. No wonder he answered you like that. Thank God he had enough brains to say something about other construction things."  
  
Harry looked at her admiringly. Did she really think about everything? Oh, and by the way.  
  
"He also said something a flower. He kept repeating that."  
  
Hermione looked at him and smiled mischievously.  
  
"Isn't it obvious?"  
  
"Not for all of us" Ron answered.  
  
"It is for us" Amala said.  
  
"Sirius has a crush." Hermione said, smiling and Harry and Ron gaped.  
  
"A crush?" Harry asked. "On whom?"  
  
"Well, that I don't know" Amala said.  
  
Hermione was just about to say something when the door to the bedroom opened and Dean came in.  
  
"Oh, sorry! 'm I interrupting something?" he asked.  
  
"No, we were just leaving" Hermione said and dragged Amala after her.  
  
Dean just smirked after them.  
  
"Now, what were the four of you doing in here?" he asked, in an incredibly insinuating tone.  
  
"Shut up, Dean!" the two boys said in the same time and Harry collapsed on his bed. What would happen now? And what, what was the Dark Bastard cooking -planning, he meant planning. Must not miss dinner again.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
That night, Voldemort was seriously considering just blasting the whole world to pieces. The Order of the Blasted Red Bird had a mole. And that mole was somewhere in his inner circle.  
  
"Bellatrix, please call my dearest servant, will you?"  
  
"Yes, M-master" he said and left for the man.  
  
How could everything go so wrong? Then, there was the Towers business. The man knew too much and could do too much for his own good. He had to be eliminated. But how? Well, he'd probably have to do it personally. The Ministry obviously didn't want him to go to prison. Or was it again Dumbledore's hand? Or was the man covering up for himself?  
  
And then there were the other lands. Take the elven land for example. Somebody had found a way to their kingdoms, that was for sure. And if somebody else could do it, then so could he. Elves. They never interfered in mortal business, but Voldemort would in their. He wanted those lands. But not now, after this thing with conquer-the-world was over.  
  
And then there was Potter. Harry Potter. The one mentioned in the prophecy. The one who had the power to kill him. Alas, he would definitely kill the boy as soon as he had a good occasion. And no more dueling-having fun business, that was for sure. No, now he'd kill him quickly. He had seen too much in his time not to do it like that. Take for instance all the examples of stories when the bad guys lost because they explained their whole bloody plan to the good guy.  
  
And after Harry Bloody Potter, there was the Green Flame Torch rumor. Not a good one and he, Voldemort, didn't like it. He'd try to get it and destroy it, so that it could never be used again. Ha! Maybe Potter would get this one too and then he'd eliminate him and the Torch fast.  
  
Next on his problem-list there was the 'Wormtail is an idiot' problem. Ah, the rat didn't hurry up with anything, did he? Maybe he needed more. motivation.  
  
Voldemort grinned. That would be good. Giving motivation to Wormtail. Where was the rat when you needed him? Staying far away from his Cruciatus Curse, that was sure.  
  
Last but not least was the best-servants-still-in-prison business. Why didn't Wormtail hurry up?! And where was his servant?!  
  
As if on cue, the door opened and a an came in.  
  
"Barty Crouch, what took you so long?!" Voldemort asked, glaring.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Author's Note: Yes, kiddies, I know what happened to him at the end of book four. But Voldemort doesn't, now does he? *smiles mischievously*. So, what will happen next, what will happen next? Ten points to whomever knows whom Sirius is in love with, ten to whomever knows what's up with Barty and fifty to the one who kicks Voldie's arse. That said, onward, my friends!  
  
To those of you who don't know this, I once had a passion for physics. Here's one of the jokes I most like about the subject:  
  
Some time ago a piece of paper was posted around here where I study saying something like this: "Theory is when you know how it works but it still doesn't. Practice is when it works but you don't know why. In this Department [Physics], theory and practice are joined together: nothing works and no one knows why!"  
  
Don't know why I wrote it *shrugs to emphasize point*, but it's here. So, Read, review and somebody please tell me what TBC stands for. -in fanfictions-.  
  
Thanks to: Skillz: I'm glad you like my story!  
  
markoftheantiherO: Well, don't worry, I won't consider that you stole him. Trust me, there is now way in which he could be exactly as your character. And it's interesting to consider him the manifestation of the Green Flame Torch, but no. I'm afraid he isn't it. The Green Flame Torch has a way different type of consciousness from a human being. It is -how can I say this?- an object that can't exactly think or feel in the normal way, but which can somehow understand things. Towers is a human being, with the characteristic way of thinking. So, I'm glad you like my story! R&R  
  
the Red Dragons Order: Sorry I forgot your dedication for so long, but then again, I also forgot when my dad's birthday is. The point is, I forget a lot. Sorry. I also hope that you got the chapter this time. 


	18. Dreams

Disclaimer: I don't own it. I really don't. Oh, please, please, don't insist, I really don't. *smirk*  
  
Dedication: To the Red Dragons Order, the best author on this site.  
  
Author's Note: Another one.  
  
Chapter 18: Dreams  
  
Harry was dreaming again. A normal dream. Until.  
  
The image changed and he was no longer flying around on a broomstick, but in the middle of a forest. And in the forest there were two people whom he easily recognized. Towers and his Master. He couldn't see the Master's face, he had a hood, but he knew it was him.  
  
"Is it all well, sir?" asked Towers.  
  
"All is well, yes, as well is it can be when the world's going to hell" the other man said with a sigh. "Hogwarts will be threatened. Good old Voldemort found a way to get past my wards. I knew it would happen once and I feared it would before his first fall. I fear he will get past the Great Ward of Light. As all others, this ward too has its weaknesses, which I knew too well then. "  
  
"What does you Mistress say?" Towers asked and Harry gaped. The Master had a Mistress! The other man laughed.  
  
"She, as usual, says very little. She said she will help, but only when she will need to. And I would advice you to stop calling her 'Mistress'. She is a very good person and all, but she might kill you for that."  
  
"Just expressing my respect" Towers said and bowed slightly.  
  
"Don't, she says she deserves no more than a normal woman."  
  
"Noble, she is"  
  
"Noble, but she considers herself the friend and guider of all who need her. So, don't call her 'Mistress' unless you want her angry."  
  
Towers smiled.  
  
"Harry saw us at our last meeting."  
  
"Harry sees us now" the man said and Towers was staring surprised at him. Exactly as Harry, actually.  
  
"You mean, you let him witness so much?"  
  
"He has not been here from the beginning."  
  
"Since when, then?"  
  
"Since you asked me if all is well."  
  
Towers looked around.  
  
"I can't see him"  
  
The Master laughed.  
  
"Of course you can't! He is not here physically."  
  
"I can see people even if they are not physically there and you know it."  
  
"But this time, I am hiding him from anybody's look. He is dreaming all this, Jack."  
  
"You do realize how weird it is for you to call me 'Jack', don't you? So many people."  
  
"Shhh" his Master shushed him. "That is not for him to know. Dumbledore suspects, but he does not know. And neither is for Harry to know."  
  
Harry looked at them confused. What was going on? Why was it weird for Towers' Master to call him Jack?  
  
"No, on to other business" the Master said. "Your sister has entered the Forest. She shall stay there until I tell her to leave."  
  
"Sister?!" Towers said and looked at him confused. "I don't have a-. Oh, my sister."  
  
The Master laughed.  
  
"So bright but yet having so many problems in understanding. She will be there and I will ask you not to contact her. Don't. But once the Lords of Dawn will attack the son of darkness, she will be left in charge."  
  
Jack looked at him, obviously decoding all that had been said.  
  
"What about Harry, milord?"  
  
"Stop calling me 'milord'! He will."  
  
The Master paused and looked in Harry's direction, who was pulled away from the dream and found himself sitting in a dark room, on a throne. Not good. Especially since he had just felt peaceful and now he was in danger. Grave danger. Why, he didn't know.  
  
But so soon, he calmed down and started looking through the room. Hmph! Why didn't his servant hurry?! Wait a sec. what servant? What did he mean 'what servant'? The servant, of course! The one who gave him Potter, duh! The servant! But he didn't have any servant. Yes, he did!!! What the hell was wrong with him? Ah, need one of the potions that bloody traitor Snape used to make. Even if he was on goody-goody Dumbledore's side, he did have his good parts.  
  
Maybe he needed a sleep. A good sleep. Gah, being the Dark Lord had its problems. But he wasn't the. Definitely had its problems. And think about the dreams he started having! Those were guilty for his good night sleep.  
  
The door opened and he looked at it coolly.  
  
"You're getting slow, Barty" he said and a part of him gaped. Barty Crouch was there! But he was. he was. He was what? Hadn't he saved him from his father? Definitely needed something.  
  
"Sorry, Master" the other man said and fell on his knees, completely worshiping him. How nice! "Here is the thing you've asked for"  
  
Harry took the object and looked at it, pleased. It was a small stone. He knew it, alright. It was one of those extremely useful second parts of wizarding spy cameras. He gazed into it and saw an empty chair in a room. Hmmm. What large room? The Minister's office, duh! Definitely needed a rest and a potion.  
  
"Thank you, Barty!" he said, pleased. "Tell me, any news from Wormtail?"  
  
"No, Master" the other man said and looked at him in a certain way he liked so much. Barty loved him like a god, why couldn't all his servants be that way?!  
  
"He better free all those idiots from Azkaban soon"  
  
"Indeed, Master" Barty said and Harry smiled.  
  
The image faded away and Harry woke up, shaken by someone.  
  
"Harry? Harry! Wake up, or we'll be late for class!"  
  
Ron was shaking him and Harry opened his eyes.  
  
"Wha-? Ron, I'm up, I'm up!"  
  
"About time, too" Ron said. "Snape'll be in his class soon and we better be there too."  
  
Harry sprang out of bed and started dressing. Maybe running through the castle in your boxers in the middle of the night was not very bad, but running through the castle in your boxers early in the morning when everybody went to their classes was definitely bad.  
  
"Not time for that, I've got to get to Dumbledore"  
  
"Again?!" Ron called after the boy, now in his robes, who ran out the door, leaving him behind. He didn't want to be late to Snape's class, so he took his stuff and left for class.  
  
Meanwhile, Harry ran down the corridors. Maybe the dream was important, but he was quite sure Snape wouldn't excuse him if he was in any way late. Nope, so he better hurry. He made it to the gargoyle.  
  
"Sherbet lemon! Oh, no, wait. Pumpkin pie!" he cried and the gargoyle sprang out of the way and he hurried up in Dumbledore's office. He knocked, but there was no answer. "Please, please, don't be gone, I don't want to be late." Technically, he already was, but still.  
  
He entered the room and looked around. No, the Headmaster wasn't there, but Fawkes and the paintings of old headmasters and headmistress were.  
  
"Hello again, young Potter" one said. "What be you doing here now? Dumbledore's not here, you know"  
  
Harry stared at the talking painting. Usually paintings didn't talk to him. Not in the Headmaster's office, that was sure.  
  
"Apparently not. But do you know where I could find him?"  
  
"I'm afraid not" the painting replied. "But he should be here soon. Take a seat, make yourself at home."  
  
"I'll be late for Potions and Snape'll have my head" Harry complained. "I think I should be going then."  
  
But just as he was about to leave, he heard voices from the entrance to the office.  
  
"Pettigrew is getting closer to his target and the Azkaban prisoners will escape soon" he heard Snape. Well, at least he wasn't late for class. although Snape would kill him for being there.  
  
"I'm sure we can think of something Severus. But what took you so long?"  
  
"The Dark Lord wanted to talk to me a lot" Snape replied, his voice getting louder and louder, showing that he was getting closer. "Kept me there all night. And he has a camera in the Minister's office."  
  
The door to the Headmaster's office opened and Dumbledore came in, Snape right after him. The elder man just looked at Harry curiously, but Snape snapped.  
  
"And what are you doing here, Potter? Spying on people? Ten points from Gryffindor!"  
  
Dumbledore looked at him amused.  
  
"I'm really starting to wonder how come Gryffindor still has house points" the Headmaster said, seeming to work hard on not chuckling. "Ten points to Gryffindor. So, Harry, what is it that brings you here?"  
  
"I had a. two new dreams, Professor" Harry replied. "It's important! I don't know how he did it, but Barty Crouch is again his servant and he doesn't seem soulless anymore to me."  
  
The two elder people exchanged a look.  
  
"Barty Crouch is still soulless, Harry" Dumbledore said, most of his ever present eye twinkle disappearing. "Nobody deserves such a thing, but."  
  
"But I saw him! Voldemort-" Snape shuddered and glared at Harry,"-was talking to him! And he even brought him a thing through which he could see. the. Minister's. office" Harry said, more and more rarely, realization dawning in him. "Oh, it was you, Professor"  
  
The things Snape had said hit him. 'Kept me there all night'. 'camera'  
  
"But how?"  
  
Snape looked at him and said with great coolness:  
  
"I doubted before that you were an intelligent life form, Potter, but now I don't doubt it anymore. Polyjuice Potion, I do believe you studied it"  
  
Harry tried to smile a bit and failed.  
  
"Now, now, Severus, there is no need whatsoever to insult Harry" Dumbledore said. "You said something about two dreams, Harry"  
  
"Yes, sir. I once again saw Towers' Master. He said something about Towers' sister coming in a forest and he first didn't seem to know who he was talking about."  
  
"A fellow disciple" Snape said. "It is sometimes a habit to call the fellow disciples 'brothers' and 'sisters'. Obviously, the man doesn't usually put it like that, since it took such a long while for Towers to figure it out for you to actually notice something was wrong". Was that an insult? Probably. Harry decided not to dwell on it. "I just wonder why he wouldn't speak so that Towers would get the point."  
  
"They knew I was there" Harry answered.  
  
"They knew?" Dumbledore asked, looking over his glasses.  
  
"The Master said I was there and that he was hiding me."  
  
"Interesting. Interesting, indeed" Dumbledore said. "Is that all?"  
  
"Yes, sir"  
  
"Then you better go back to class. And Harry, don't tell anyone about Severus."  
  
"No, sir, I won't."  
  
Snape was already leaving and was currently passing through the door. Harry could only follow. He felt awkward following him down the corridors. He was suddenly struck by the fact that that man had kissed Amala. He shuddered. And then he was struck by the fact that he hadn't said as much as a "five points from Gryffindor".  
  
Indeed, Severus Snape acted as if he weren't there. Until they were about halfway to the dungeons.  
  
"So, Potter, having bad dreams?" he asked and Harry didn't know how to take the question. Was that a mock? Or a try to befriend with him, since his girlfriend was one of his friends? Or a way to put an end to the awkward situation?  
  
"Um, yes" he answered. "Do you think Voldemort-"  
  
"Never say the name" hissed Snape, suddenly stopping and turning to look him in the eye. "Never"  
  
Harry shuddered a bit. Man, the guy was creepy. How on Earth could Amala. Never mind.  
  
"Alright, Professor" he said and Snape started walking again. "Professor. I. I'm not my father" he said, not knowing why.  
  
Snape stopped again.  
  
"That's obvious, Potter. Five points from Gryffindor for being idiots."  
  
But still, his eyes had a weird look in them and Harry wondered why he had said that. Well, of course he wasn't his father! Duh! Snape, however, had a very weird look in his eyes and Harry wondered if indeed the Potion Master had thought he was him. But why had he said it? Why? Of all the idiotic things he could have said, why did he say that? The stupidest, the worst, the most idiotic thing. 'I am not my father." Jesus!  
  
They nearly made it to the classroom when Snape said one last thing.  
  
"And tell Mrs. Wright she has been a complete idiot and forgot her feather in my office when she had detention and I'd be glad if she took it back. If I just remembered where I put it." Snape muttered.  
  
Harry smiled to himself.  
  
"I will. What time, sir?"  
  
"Are you some kind of an idiot, Potter?" Snape asked. "Oh, dear, what am I asking. She may come any time. But if you insist in asking for time, then remember six o' clock."  
  
The two entered the classroom  
  
"Excuse me for being late, I was busy recovering Potter from a toilet on the fourth floor in which he had gotten stuck. Which reminds me, Potter. Twenty points from Gryffindor for wasting my time."  
  
Harry had an enraged expression on his face. What?! Stuck in a toilet?! Oh, the nerve! And he even took points! The Slytherins all smirked and almost all Gryffindors stared at him with confused looks on their faces.  
  
"To your seat, Potter, or I'll take another fifteen!" Snape snapped and Harry reluctantly went to his seat and sat down. "Now, today we learn."  
  
He started telling them about a potion or another and put the ingredients on the blackboard and they all started brewing.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"Oh, and by the way, Amala, Snape asked you to go to his place tonight at six" Harry whispered to her when they were out of the Transfiguration class.  
  
"He just. asked?" Amala said, raising an eyebrow. "Is he sick?"  
  
"Actually, his exact words were 'tell Mrs. Wright she has been a complete idiot and forgot her feather in my office when she had detention and I'd be glad if she took it back.'"  
  
Hermione giggled somewhere nearby and Amala started laughing.  
  
"Thought so" she said, after she calmed herself down. "What a way with words. isn't he wonderful?"  
  
Ron just stared at her.  
  
"I do hope that was sarcastic" he said, sending her back into fits of laughter.  
  
/*-/*-/*-  
  
Harry was walking through the castle, thinking. Maybe he could use some help with the 'Voldemort issue'. He decided to go to Dumbledore's office. Maybe the old mage could help. Those blasted dreams were waaay too often for his liking.  
  
He made it to the gargoyle and gave the password and started going up. Why didn't he ask for Hermione's advice? Weird, she was the first one whom he should ask. After all, she had probably read all the Hogwarts library.  
  
But she didn't have much experience with such things, did she? He could only worry her and besides, she and Ron were busy at the moment with some homework. No, Dumbledore probably would be much more help than anybody else.  
  
He entered the office and started to look around. No sign of him, however.  
  
"Excuse me" he said towards the picture that had talked to him that morning "where is Professor Dumbledore?"  
  
The picture jerked its head up.  
  
"Ah, my dear boy. You're out of luck, I'm afraid. The Headmaster has left for the Ministry."  
  
Harry sighed.  
  
"This is not my day."  
  
The picture smiled.  
  
"Oh, cheer up, lad. No use to let yourself be defeated by small things, now is there?"  
  
Harry looked at him.  
  
"Guess not. Sir, if I'm not rude, who are you?"  
  
The man laughed.  
  
"One of the ex-Headmasters, as you can easily see. Ah, wonderful days long time ago when I could rule the school."  
  
"Go to sleep Maxwell" said one of the pictures, a female one. "Or go through your other portraits."  
  
"As much as I'd love to, I'd rather not, milady" he said, making a small bow. "I'm rather bored so I'll talk to this charming young man here."  
  
Harry watched the two pictures argue, all the time looking very calm.  
  
'They must be bored." he thought. "Well, I'll be going now" he said aloud.  
  
"Oh, alright, my dear boy" said the man. "And come back later or tomorrow!"  
  
Harry nodded and left. Nobody was there to help him. Nobody. Amala was at her date with Snape (ugh!), Ron and Hermione were making homework, Dumbledore was at the Ministry. He passed down the corridors feeling sad. They were all busy, having normal lives. And he was having more and more Voldemort-dreams, he was feeling weirder and weirder. Why him? Why not somebody else? Why did he have to be the potential savior of the wizarding world? Why not Neville? The prophecy could have been about him.  
  
He let his head hang down, tiredly.  
  
"I'm the only one who has these problems" he muttered to himself.  
  
And then he passed through the corridor where there was Towers' office. He stopped. Of course! Towers! As weird as he might have been, the dark-light, non-sleeping, master-obsessed Professor said he'd help him. He knew about many things. Maybe. maybe somehow he'd help?!  
  
He entered the office. Nobody was in.  
  
"Just my bloody luck!" he said, angry. But he decided to wait for a while. He sat in a chair in front of Towers' desk and started looking around. Ok, this felt weird. Going to get help from Towers. Yeah, weird. But maybe he knew something? He was definitely weird enough to exist a possibility for him to know how to get away from those dreams. A weird shriek made him stiffen and tense.  
  
"Harry Potter" said a strangled kid-like voice and Harry turned to see the Necrow in a corner of a room. So, the freakish thing was still there!  
  
He shuddered, but then remembered that caged, the bird held no power. As long as it didn't escape, he was fine. And it wouldn't escape until Towers would let it go or it would escape by itself in a burst of power, which by the way didn't happen unless you angered the thing bad enough.  
  
And then a closed book on Towers' desk attracted his attention. Harry looked at it closely. The 'Book of Kings'. Curiosity went through his body and he looked around.  
  
'If the Professor isn't coming back soon.' he thought, without finishing.  
  
But Towers didn't come and the book kept calling him. What was in there, beside the scene with the king that he had showed? What else was in the book?  
  
What harm could it do to look in it? It was just a book, probably in the school library, too. Why shouldn't he. take a peak? A small one? What harm could it do? Towers had showed him the book, too.  
  
He bent over the desk and picked up the book and opened it. Picture after picture, he saw people in different places. He passed even the picture Towers showed them. But not by much. He landed in front of a picture that simply attracted him. It was the same king as in the picture Towers had showed them, but no longer on his throne, but on a simple chair in front of a few other people, two of them taking care of horses, looking concerned about something. They were somewhere in the middle of a forest. Harry looked around and then decided. He took out his wand and touched the book easily with the wand.  
  
"Show me"  
  
The picture started moving.  
  
"Really think it will work?" asked a powerful-looking man.  
  
"Of course, Godric" answered a shorter, naïve looking woman. "I thought you were the brave one!"  
  
"Salazar, you're rubbing off on him" said a very wise-looking woman.  
  
"Am not. Am I to be blamed if he's loosing his legendary courage?"  
  
"I'm not losing my courage!" Godric said, upset and Salazar smirked.  
  
"Where is Jack, anyway? He said he'd be here soon" said the naïve looking woman.  
  
"Oh, Helga, when are you going to learn that he only does as he pleases?" asked the wise-looking one.  
  
"I thought he could at least be on time!" she said.  
  
Harry stared at the moving pictures. Helga? Salazar? Godric? The four founders! He looked in fascination at what happened.  
  
The king decided to start speaking.  
  
"I trust he'll be here soon. He usually is on time."  
  
Helga looked at the wise-looking woman who probably was Rowena Ravenclaw, an I-told-you-so hanging between them.  
  
"And actually, here he comes" the king said and stood up to look somewhere far away.  
  
Suddenly, there was a cry somewhere from behind Harry.  
  
"STOP!"  
  
The picture in the book stopped moving where it was and Harry turned to see the Defence Professor, his wand drawn and a mad expression on his face. Harry gulped.  
  
"Sorry, Professor, I just. it was here and I."  
  
Towers looked at the picture and said, in a surprisingly calm tone:  
  
"I understand. No harm done, however. I just can't believe I was a big enough idiot to let this book on my desk."  
  
He turned to look at Harry.  
  
"Is there something you came for?"  
  
Harry stared at him. Something? Oh, right.  
  
"Um, Professor, I was wondering if you could help me. with my dream- problem."  
  
Towers relaxed a little.  
  
"Ah, yes.I know from reliable sources that Voldemort too has such dreams. He hates them. It isn't his scar that hurts, however, since he doesn't have one, but his entire being. You can't stand the hate, he can't stand the love."  
  
"Love? But I."  
  
"Tell me, Harry, what saved you from his attack fifteen years ago? Was it not your mother's love?"  
  
"Yes, it was" Harry admitted.  
  
"It still lives in you" Towers said and put a hand on his. "It still does. He can't stand it."  
  
Towers looked in his eyes.  
  
"I'm afraid there isn't much you can do to stop these dreams. And it will get worse."  
  
"Worse?!" Harry asked, shocked. "Worse?!"  
  
"I'm afraid so, Harry. But it will be a long time, I hope, until it gets too much worse. Unless the idiot decides to speed up the process."  
  
"Can't we slow it down?" asked Harry.  
  
"We could" Towers said. "But it's not easy at all. My Master did it for a while. He managed to interfere with your link, but he was stopped by his own Master."  
  
"Why? If it helps." Harry started, but Towers interrupted.  
  
"Because it doesn't anymore. It is enough for it. Yes, momentarily it could help, but after a while it might prove to be bad. And trust me, it is bad enough. But, Harry, try to live your own life. You're not damned not to do it."  
  
Harry nodded and, understanding that that was all Towers was willing to say to him, left.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Amala was happily going down to the dungeons. Ah, back! Back to Severus!  
  
She pushed the door open and saw him, of course, grading papers. Was there anything else he did? Ever?  
  
"I understood I was idiotic enough to forget my feather here, Professor" she said, with a mischievous smile and Severus raised an eyebrow.  
  
"So, Potter is a part of the unintelligent life forms. That's why I chose him to give you the message."  
  
"Well, at first he said you asked me out on a date" she said.  
  
"Remind me to take 10 points from Gryffindor for his twisting of my words" Severus said.  
  
"Is there no way to please you?" she asked, mock-exasperated. "Which reminds me. Harry stuck in a toilet?"  
  
Snape rolled his eyes.  
  
"Believable, isn't it?! I had to say something, we were both late."  
  
She raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Why were the two of you together? And why were you late? You're never late."  
  
Snape made a promise to himself never to get a girlfriend again. Now she was asking questions! Soon, she'd be asking him to do things the way she liked it. This had to be stopped.  
  
"That does not concern you" he said.  
  
"No need to glare" she said.  
  
"I'm not glaring."  
  
"Yes, you are. Anyway, don't tell me if you don't want to."  
  
Severus relaxed. Maybe she wasn't going to destroy all his life. He tried to smile at her. Well, tried. Maybe he should take lessons? He stood up and went to her. She just smiled and kissed him. Again, she took control. Bloody Gryffindors! Not that he minded, not that he minded.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Author's Notes: Ah, my dear friends, another chapter has gone. And I must say I had great fun writing it. Not because it had been really funny or anything, but because of the mental images I got and thoughts that passed through my head. And realization of how stupid some things sounded like. Yep, like the Voldie-Barty scene. First time I somehow managed to make it look like SLASH. God knows how I did it. And having some very interesting singing/dancing scenes in my mind was not very sad either. Like Snape singing 'I did survive' (adaptation to 'I will survive') when coming up the stairs to Dumbledore's office. Like Voldemort singing 'Message in a bottle' by Sting -a bit adapted- ('sending out an S.O.S., sending out an S.O.S, I hope I soon get my potion in a bottle') and many, many others which you get when you listen to music and write in the same time and also had a lot of fun lately (you'd have a great lot of fun too if you'd just seen on the door of a restaurant: "We hire girls". Hmmm.)  
  
I don't know when I'll update, the holidays are coming and I'm not going to be around, but who knows. Anyway, if I don't get to post before the New Year's Eve, Merry Christmas, a Happy New Year! May all be well for you in the new year!  
  
Ah, on Christmas I got my first Harry Potter book. Funny story, too. I bought the Mickey Mouse magazines -don't laugh, but I like comics- and I kept seeing the 'Harry Potter' commercials. At first, I was indifferent. ('boy wizard goes to wizarding school'. not too interesting.). However, I kept seeing these commercials and started wondering what all was about. The covers of the books were weird. There was this boy with eyeglasses and a lightning-shaped thing on his forehead. He was riding a broomstick or a weird animal. I just shook my head. But then I got in a book shop and saw the books.  
  
I said to myself 'oh, what the hell' and picked up one of them -it was the third book, but I didn't know that- and started reading. 'Hated summer vacations'? 'Wished he could do his homework, but he was forced to do it during the night'? 'Happened to be a wizard'? Gods! What was up with this kid? Nerd! Or, was he some kind of a Spiderman or Superman? Did his parents know he was a wizard? Was he the type of a kid who went into different worlds? I imagined him as a very smart, handsome kid who goes to normal school and has a secret second-life, where he goes into different worlds. Oh, well, as you can see, I've got quite an imagination.  
  
So, I put the book down. 'Not for me'. But the seed was planted and I started thinking more and more of the books. Christmas was coming near and my mom asked me what I wanted for Christmas. I answered. "Get me a Harry Potter book. The first. It has a bird-thing on the cover and is called something with 'prisoner'." Well, what?! It sounded to me as if it were the third book! Luckily, my mom saw it was 'the third year at Hogwarts' and bought me another one. Which wasn't 'the Philosopher's Stone'. 'The Philosopher Stone's were all in hardcover and she said: "it's just a silly book we're checking out. Mind if it's the second?". My answer was "no". So, I got the second book and started reading. It was. oh, wow. the book. much greater even than "Shogun". "Winnettou". Wonderful. Just the 'Quiddich' part didn't I get. From the second book you can't, trust me. But it was interesting nevertheless. I went and wanted to buy myself the first book. Still in hardcover. I still wasn't hooked up enough though, so I ended up with the third -the fourth wasn't out yet-. But I got totally hooked by the third, so I bought the first -yes, in hardcover. Cost me a lot, too, but I didn't care. not anymore-. I read it. And so I became a Potter fan. And I never called the hippogriff a 'bird-thing' ever again. *sniff*, *sniff* (I do have a cold)  
  
Whoa! Look how much I wrote for Author's Notes! My, my, they're starting to look like a novel!  
  
And since last time I did say I'd give 10 points to whomever guesses right about either Barty or who Sirius has a crush on, here we go!  
  
Skillz: 17 points -didn't guess who used the Polyjuice-  
  
The Red Dragons Order: 10 points -yep, Rose. Wasn't that hard to guess-  
  
Megz: 10 points -cooooorrect! Rose!-  
  
And for the question -30 points-: How long will Towers last as a Defence teacher?  
  
I'd like to thank the following people for reviewing: Skillz, the Red Dragons Order, Naomie, Iniysa, Megz 


	19. Just Before Christmas

Disclaimer: Don't own it. Really, I don't.  
  
Dedication: To the Red Dragons Order, one of the best authors I've ever had the pleasure to read stories from (Sorry you're not the best Red, but there is J.K. Rowling in that category and don't forget J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Anne Rice and a few others)  
  
Author's Note: Enjoy and Merry Christmas!  
  
Chapter 19: Just Before Christmas  
  
Ah, the snow, the wonderful white snow, crunching under his feet! Ah, the smell of approaching Christmas! Ah, the white beauty of all things! Christmas is an enchanted time, no wonder about that. The only problem was he was working. Great! And not only was he working, he also had huge problems, too.  
  
'Think, Sirius, think' the Animagus told himself. Yeah, right, as if telling himself that ever worked.  
  
So, how do you escape from a bunch of Death Eaters, without them noticing you? And where the hell were the other agents? Sitting behind a few boxes in the old house was not a good way to spend Christmas. Yeah, he knew there was still a week left, but still. At this rate he'd still be there in a week.  
  
"So, what was your first encounter with the Dark Lord like?" asked one of the Death Eaters and Sirius had to keep himself from banging his head against the wall. Perfect! They all stood there and said stories from their first encounters with Voldemort. This was just his bloody luck!  
  
"Oh, it was wonderful" another one answered. "He was so."  
  
Sirius didn't want to even think how he was. It almost made him puke. Terrifying, powerful, great, those were just about one percent out of what the Death Eaters said. Somebody save him!!!  
  
In his boredom state, he noted that if those characteristics he had thought of were one percent, then a hundred percent were 300 characteristics. Bloody understatement of the year! He hadn't even known that there were so many praise adjectives in English! -a few had been in other languages, but still-. Must remember to kill Dumbledore. Even Azkaban had been better than 10 hours of this awful thing! Hmmm. How about a nice nap? Yeah, good idea.  
  
He closed his eyes -he was already lying down- and let himself nearly fall asleep. Nearly. A voice woke him up.  
  
"The Dark Lord is coming"  
  
He jerked his head up. Good thing he hadn't fallen asleep yet, or else he'd have missed the thing he had first came there for and 10 hours would have gone straight to hell. Wait a second! The Dark Lord?! Gulp. It wasn't supposed to be Voldemort. It was supposed to be someone else, a new contact. Shit. Maybe he should kill Snape for informing wrong? He should kill Snape anyway, but that was another point.  
  
He watched from behind the boxes as the tall, red eyed man came in the room.  
  
"My beloved Death Eaters" he started saying and then stopped. Not good. Not good. Oh shit, oh shit. "There is a reason why I have come here myself" he started again and Sirius calmed down a bit. "We'll attack Azkaban" Sirius's eyes widened in horror. Oh, no! This soon?! "We'll free." Why was he stopping all the time? Then, Voldemort suddenly started hissing and a huge snake started going towards Sirius. Oh shit?  
  
He jumped from behind the boxes and ran as fast as he could towards the door.  
  
"Get him!" cried the snake-like man. "Kill him! Avada Kedavra!"  
  
Sirius started dodging killing curses and managed to get out of the house and into the open, in the snow.  
  
'Of all the dogs, I had to pick a black one' he thought as he ran through the white, very white, too white snow, green beams shooting past him. 'I don't want to die! Not again!' he thought to himself and ran as fast as he could. He ran over the field and towards a forest. Faster, faster, faster. One more dodged killing curse.  
  
He entered the safety of the forest and breathed relieved. Probably they hadn't followed him, but he kept running through the forest. He suddenly saw some people in front. Iris!  
  
He quickly changed back into his human form and nearly ended up hexed before she realized that it was him.  
  
"Iris, I've spied for Dumbledore at that meeting." he suddenly stopped seeing they weren't alone.  
  
"These are some friends of mine" she said and pointed towards the two people nearby. "That's Varamesh and that's Simnai"  
  
"Um, hello. Sirius" he said and shook their hands. "Unnatural names you have there" he said towards the two tall, slim, beautiful men.  
  
"Elves usually do" Simnai said.  
  
"You're what?!" Sirius said, awestruck.  
  
"Elves" Iris said. "I've spent a while with them and a friend of ours who isn't here today, Sania."  
  
"Oh" he said. What a bright line!  
  
"So, what was the problem again?" she asked. "You were spying and."  
  
"They're attacking Azkaban"  
  
She widened her eyes. "What? Now?"  
  
"I don't know, Good old Voldemort spotted me before I could get that part, but sometime soon, probably" he answered and noted she looked beautiful even when she looked angrily around. Ok, no time for that.  
  
"Um, just a question" Varamesh said. "Why do you, Sirius, have to spy when Snape's doing such a good job?"  
  
"Snape's not involved in the Azkaban attack, he's taking care of the 'Green Flame Torch' problem. You know, thinking traps for the one who gets it in order to kill him and destroy the Torch."  
  
"Aha" the elf said. "He shouldn't foul around with the Torch and its bearer. It is too powerful for him to be easy to get."  
  
"Yeah, well, you know him, he'll try to do anything possible to destroy an obstacle."  
  
"Are we talking about Snape or Voldemort here?" asked Simnai, confused.  
  
"Voldemort" Sirius answered.  
  
"Ah" he answered. "Idiot. Powerful, intelligent, cunning idiot"  
  
"Yep, that's him!" Iris said, sending the elf a small smile. "Listen, Sirius, we have to warn Dumbledore that it will happen soon. They should send reinforcements."  
  
"Yes" the Animagus answered as they Apparated in Hogsmeade. Elves could Apparate? He hadn't known that. Then again, he hadn't known there were any elves left. And, oh, why did it have to happen so bloody close to Christmas?! Just because snake-face hated Christmas didn't mean he could ruin everybody's! Come on, an attack so close to the most wonderful holiday of the year! It was enough to destroy anybody's winter and wreak havoc! Indeed it was!  
  
Suddenly realization dawned over Sirius's face.  
  
"He'll do it on Christmas" he said and they all stopped, the castle in front of them.  
  
"What?!" Varamesh asked. "How do you know?!"  
  
"It's the worst time he could choose. He chose it" the Animagus laconically explained.  
  
The elves looked at each other and then started going fast towards the castle, the two humans right behind them. And then they stopped.  
  
"Iris, we're going to the Forest and back to our lands. It is not yet the time we come back in the picture" Simnai said.  
  
She nodded and then turned to Sirius.  
  
"Maybe you should go alone. I'm supposed to be visiting an ill friend."  
  
"Ok" he answered.  
  
"I'll wait for you at Hagrid's hut. You can tell me how it all went" she said and smiled. Sirius smiled back in reply and started running towards the castle, alone. Christmas! Why Christmas?  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"Christmas!" the Defence Professor shouted at the 6th years. "Let's make a few changes, shall we? This classroom is so. un-festive!"  
  
He waved his wand and the Defence classroom suddenly decorated with some tinsel. The students just stared at the merry man.  
  
"And what carols do you prefer? Oh, never mind, I'll just play one of my own!" His eyes twinkled merrily. "Veni cantus!"  
  
The Slytherins glared at the Professor as 'Rudolph, the Red Nosed Reindeer' started sounding. Oh, well, it could've been worse. A sudden shriek could be heard from somewhere and they froze. It sounded like a strangled child. Only Towers continued in his very cheery manner:  
  
"Shut up, ye old freak, this is jolly time, you can't frighten anybody!"  
  
The students noticed the Necrow in one corner of the room. What was the horrible thing doing there? As if answering them, Towers answered:  
  
"I brought the old thing to stay here. Maybe it'll cheer up"  
  
"Mental!" Ron muttered towards Harry and Hermione. "Cheering up Necrows?"  
  
Towers looked straight at him.  
  
"I heard that, Mr. Weasley. Yes, I am mental and yes, I'm trying to cheer up the blasted thing. If cheered up, Necrows have special powers. Mrs. Granger, will you please explain it to him?"  
  
She nodded and started explaining that if turned to the light side, the birds became very powerful and helping. Of course, all that in about a million words. By the end of it, Ron swore Towers was the devil himself and Hermione whacked him with her hand. All in all, it was a jolly scene. That was until.  
  
The door opened and McGonagall came in.  
  
"Mr. Towers, I would like to speak to you, if possible."  
  
"Why, of course!" he answered. "Be good and don't tempt the Necrow!" he cried before getting out the door and the song changed into 'Jingle Bells'.  
  
Parvati got up and looked at the door.  
  
"He's evil, I tell you! I've seen it in the stars! He even brings the Necrow to class to frighten us! He's killed Monica Kane!" she started again, as she had done for quite a while. The Gryffindors started asking themselves how many meals they'd spent with her against-Towers speeches. Quite many, actually. Harry started wondering what she had against him.  
  
"Shut up, Patil, at least for once!" Draco said from the other side of the room. "You're getting very boring and I'm frankly sick of it"  
  
"Who asked you, Slytherin?" she replied, angrily.  
  
"Everybody agrees with me" Draco said, a smirk on his face.  
  
"Does not!" Parvati said, mad.  
  
"Yes, we do" Seamus agreed.  
  
"See? Even your pitiful little friends agree" Draco said.  
  
"Not all of them" the girl answered.  
  
"What's the matter, girl?" asked Pansy Parkinson. "Want some attention?"  
  
"Stop teasing me!" she cried.  
  
"Why should we do that?" Pansy asked, smirking.  
  
"I'm telling you Towers will kill us all! He's in league with the Death Eaters!"  
  
"He helped clear Sirius!" Harry said.  
  
"He's a Death Eater, I tell you!" the girl cried.  
  
"No, he's not!" Neville interfered.  
  
"Yes! Yes he is!" Pansy cried angrily.  
  
Hermione decided to interfere.  
  
"Pansy, sit down" she said gently.  
  
"See, even Mudblood Granger agrees that you're downright boring" Draco said.  
  
That was it. Parvati snapped and took out her wand.  
  
"Accio ball!" she cried and a black ball from Towers' desk rushed in her hand and she threw it at Draco, who managed to change its trajectory with a movement of his own wand. The black ball flew away in a corner from the room.  
  
"You don't have such a good aim, do you, Patil?" asked Draco, glaring at her.  
  
Suddenly Hermione shrieked.  
  
"Look! The Necrow!" she cried and everybody in the classroom turned to look at the caged bird.  
  
The Necrow was holding the black ball in its beak and, as all looked towards it, it threw the ball in the bars of the cage, which shivered as if they were leaves under the wind and then disappeared.  
  
"Oh, shit!" Hermione said and the bird flew out of what used to be the cage.  
  
The horrible bird flew above their heads for a few seconds, screeching like a strangled child.  
  
"Harry Potter!" it shrieked and attacked Harry, who had already taken out his wand.  
  
"Impedimenta!" he cried and the bird was fully hit, but obviously not enough, since it just lost aim.  
  
"Stupefy!" cried Hermione, also hitting it, but it just flew up again, flying in circles over the classroom.  
  
"Hermione Granger!" it shrieked again and launched itself against her.  
  
"Impedimenta!" cried Harry again, making it lose aim. It just turned and attacked Hermione again.  
  
"Impedimenta!" she also cried, to gain time.  
  
"Expecto Patronum!" Harry said and a silver stag erupted from his wand and attacked the bird. "Hey, look, it's working!"  
  
The Necrow flew above the stag and shot straight through it. The stag launched itself afterwards against the Necrow. They fought like this for nearly a minute before the Necrow shot again through Harry's stag, making it disappear. It then rose again in the air.  
  
"Harry Potter!" it shrieked again and attacked the boy.  
  
"Impedimenta!" the bird lost aim again. God, why hadn't Towers told them enough about banishing it?  
  
Suddenly, the door to the classroom opened and Towers came in. His eyes widened at the scene and he shouted:  
  
"LEAVE THEM!!!"  
  
The bird looked at him and shrieked his name and attacked him.  
  
"DOWN, SLAVE!" he shouted again and the bird obediently fell at his feet, leaving the class mesmerized. Towers' eyes narrowed. "One more move like that and you will be tortured to death. Have I made myself clear?" he asked and the bird gave a soft shriek, if that was in any way possible. The Professor took out his wand and conjured a cage around the bird and then placed it on his desk.  
  
In the silence that followed this -God knew where the Professor's singing charm had faded-, they all stared at the dark teacher. No, scratch that, it wasn't a dark teacher, it was a dark wizard. He didn't seem to be a teacher anymore.  
  
"Who took the Dark Ball?" he asked picking the black ball from where it had fallen. Nobody answered. "I will ask again and somebody better answer, or I will question all of you under Veritaserum and the person who did it will be out of school before he or she will be able to say 'but I.'"  
  
They all looked at each other and Parvati's hand slowly went up.  
  
Towers nodded darkly.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"E-excuse me?" the girl asked.  
  
"Why on Earth would you take something from my desk and give it to a dark bird?"  
  
"I-I." she stuttered,  
  
"How long did you touch it?"  
  
"P-pardon?"  
  
"How long did you touch the Dark Ball?" Towers asked.  
  
"Um. one second?" she asked, unsure and the teacher nodded.  
  
"Foolish girl" he said. "It could have turned out worse. So, what happened?"  
  
Harry looked at the others.  
  
"She was saying something and everybody teased and she got mad and summoned the ball from your desk and threw it at Malfoy who deflected it and it flew at the Necrow"  
  
Towers nodded and put the black ball on the desk.  
  
"One piece of advice, Mrs. Patil. Don't mess with things you don't know. You might have seriously injured someone or yourself. My things are not to be played with and many things that belong to me are quite dangerous. That goes for the rest of the class, too. Don't play with my things. I am the Defence the Dark Arts Professor after all and this ball was here because I was showing it to the 7th years. I did not let them touch it. It is that dangerous."  
  
The class unconsciously gulped.  
  
"But, alas, nothing happened" he said and gave them a soft smile. "So, I do believe your next class will begin soon. I will let you go"  
  
They all got up and Towers called a new carol -'Silent Night'- and sat down in his chair, waiting for his next class.  
  
Hermione started talking to the others as soon as they were out of range from their colleagues.  
  
"I can't believe Towers has a Dark Ball!"  
  
"But, Hermione, what about this Dark Ball?" Amala asked.  
  
"Oh, usually, dark wizards have it. I never thought one of our teachers would have one. Durmstrang, yes, maybe, but a Hogwarts teacher!"  
  
"What's a Dark Ball, Hermione?" Ron asked.  
  
"An extremely dangerous and... how can I put this? It can serve different goals and Towers has to be powerful to be able to touch one, usually light wizards can't stand them too well, but he seems quite ok. Oh, and if you think very cruel, then it might act as a wand or a weapon. Not quite as powerful as a wand, but still. And it can be used by creatures of all types, especially dark creatures. The Necrow was a good example."  
  
"If it's not as powerful as a wand, then why is it so important?" Ron asked.  
  
"Because it can be used only by dark wizards and does some things more powerful than a wand. Like it can act as a cage for a person or creature. Or it can serve as a camera. But most importantly, it's used in dark rituals and it's said that you can summon demons and devils and shadows and all types of dark creatures with the Dark Ball. And it's very expensive."  
  
"Then why does Towers have one if it doesn't serve him to do anything?" Harry asked.  
  
"Maybe he does some types of dark magic" Amala said, thinking hard.  
  
"You mean. Parvati's right? Towers-a Death Eater?" asked Harry.  
  
"No, no." Amala said. "There is a way. to summon dark forces. if you are light."  
  
"Really?" Ron asked. "I didn't know that"  
  
"You don't know anything" Hermione replied and he, in a very mature fashion, stuck his tongue out and Harry and Amala laughed.  
  
"Oh, no!" Ron said and looked over his things. "I forgot my feather in Towers' classroom!"  
  
"Well, let's go get it" Hermione said and turned at 180 degrees.  
  
They nearly ran down the corridors and finally made it to the Defence classroom. They almost stampeded inside, but heard something and decided to eavesdrop. The two voices inside were Snape's and Towers',  
  
"And could you please tell us what your brilliant plans for defending Azkaban are?" asked Snape.  
  
The four teens stared at the scene. Attack on Azkaban?!  
  
"I will tell them to you when the time is right" the Defence Professor answered.  
  
"Well, which is the right time?" Snape asked.  
  
"Ah, that is up for me to decide."  
  
"You're worse than Dumbledore!"  
  
"Thank you"  
  
Snape was starting to snap, but Towers was calm and collected. Suddenly, Snape seemed to notice something. He shot his hand forwards and grabbed a black ball from Towers' desk, holding it. The Defence Professor just watched as a shiver went through Snape's body. The Potion Master dropped the ball back on the desk and Towers smirked and grabbed it, holding it like it was some kind of a normal ball, smiling gently. Snape's eyes widened and he couldn't keep his emotions in cheek.  
  
"You are a powerful wizard" he said.  
  
"No, really?" Towers asked and looked in the ball.  
  
"This means you can be one of two. You can either be so sincere in following light that nothing can affect you or. you can be a dark wizard."  
  
"Ten points to Slytherin!" Towers laughed. "Correct. But I might also be helped by my Master who is powerful enough not to be affected by anything except maybe the fall of a world."  
  
Snape had a weird look in his eyes.  
  
"You always talk about your Master, Towers, but you've never once mentioned his name."  
  
"He will reveal it himself" the Defence teacher replied. "But until he does, it will remain just for him and me to know"  
  
"And some other disciples of his" added Snape.  
  
"Yes, some other disciples too" the other agreed, still looking at the ball, seeming to be fascinated. Suddenly, he put it down. "I will reveal my plans later. But now, I will ask you to go to your class if you don't want to meet 1st year Gryffindors"  
  
Harry, Ron, Hermione and Amala quickly hid behind a corner as the Potion Master went back to his dungeons. After about half a minute, Ron went to get his feather and then they went to their next class.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Sirius looked at the female silhouette in the Forbidden Forest and went to it.  
  
"They know now, Iris" he whispered. "It might all be well. Towers knows, maybe he'll help"  
  
She looked at him, thinking of something.  
  
"Towers. He'll help. Are you sure he hadn't known from before?"  
  
Sirius stared at her.  
  
"From whom? And why not tell us?"  
  
She looked towards the castle.  
  
"From the Master he always talks about. He is the one that knows everything. God knows what 'everything' means. He must have told Jack not to let it be known. He wants to do all things quietly. Not to be known. He might have told him. Tell me, did he interfere with anything you said?"  
  
Sirius thought for a few seconds.  
  
"No'  
  
"Then I don't know how much he knew or not. But you can believe that your assumptions were right. It will probably happen on Christmas. Christmas Eve you said, right?"  
  
"Yeah" Sirius answered and she nodded.  
  
"Well, I'll be going now. Good luck" she said and started moving away.  
  
"No, wait!" Sirius cried before he could stop himself.  
  
"Yes?" she asked, not understanding.  
  
"Stay" he answered,  
  
She looked at him confused.  
  
"Why? I don't think I'm needed."  
  
"Please, stay" Sirius said, unsure of himself. 'Sirius, old chap' he thought, 'you really have lost your touch. A few years ago. maybe 16 or 17, they used to fall in your hands.'  
  
Suddenly, Simnai appeared from behind a tree and looked at them as they stood there, him unsure of himself, her puzzled. The elf sighed.  
  
"Come on, you two, no time for love, we have a world to save!"  
  
Iris' eyes stared at the elf in shock and then at Sirius. She hadn't seen it! Oh, she could bang her head against the wall! It would have been obvious ever since she had come into his house at number twelve Grimmauld place had she not been too occupied with saving the world. The elf stared at her.  
  
"Oh my God, you are in love. Don't mind me, I'll just disappear" he said and indeed left as fast as his legs could carry him.  
  
She smiled at Sirius.  
  
"Well, thanks for the invitation, but I really have to go. I'm so sorry, Sirius! I was totally absorbed by myself to notice"  
  
She did seem sorry, but he couldn't feel any worse. It took somebody else for her to notice. Oh, well.  
  
She left, letting him behind her, walking fast in a certain direction. She was almost like an elf, leaving fast and soundless. Sirius sighed. His life wasn't too lucky, now was it? First he got killed, now this. Ok, maybe wrong order, but still.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
How fast the days to an unwanted and a very feared moment pass by you! Harry had known that since the beginning of his Hogwarts years. The exams always came too soon, too quick, the tasks in the Triwizard Tournament had come waaay too quick each time. And this particular situation was no exception. Afraid, the trio plus Amala waited for Christmas. The attack on Azkaban would happen then.  
  
/*-/*-/*-  
  
Author's Note: Just reread some of my old reviews *sniff*, you guys keep me going.  
  
And, to a brighter and waay jollier tone, MERRY CHRISTMAS! I know I said I wouldn't be updating, but I had a change in plans.  
  
So, may all your wishes come true on this blessed night!  
  
And thanks for all those who reviewed! You have no idea how much it pleases me to see the number of the reviews growing.  
  
Babyjayy: Thank you, I will!  
  
The Red Dragons Order: Voldie was crazy from before, I don't think he can go crazy.  
  
Skillz: Thank you! I'll take the 'why can't you be a dunce' part as a complimet. And I asked how long it will take for him to say bye-bye to the school, not why. So, no points. Sorry. And thanks for the review!  
  
Naomie: Well, I really don't know. Maybe 10? And I will have a sequel. Two left years, two fics. At least that's how I think it should be.  
  
Thank you and have a merry, merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, with no threats from Death Eaters or Voldies! 


	20. A Perfectly 'Normal' Christmas

Disclaimer: Don't own a thing besides Amala, Jack Towers, his Master, Iris Rose and a few characters nobody heard about before. Oh, and add the plot to that. The song parts belong to Luca Turilli, except for 'Dust in the Wind', which belongs to Kansas. I think. I'm speaking of this story, of course; otherwise I own a few other things, too. Like my clothes, my music, my CDs, my cell phone, my sweets, my.  
  
Dedication: To the Red Dragons Order, one great writer from ff.net. The best one, in my opinion.  
  
Author's Note: I have two stories written in cooperation with other writers: 'Key to Triumph' under the pen name Red Rys -co-written with the Red Dragons Order and Rachel A. Prongs- and The Prank Wars, formerly known as the Wars of Fiction -co-written with King Akvar, under who's pen name we posted this.-  
  
Onwards with our story, my dearest friends!  
  
Chapter 20: A Perfectly 'Normal' Christmas  
  
"He just had to pick Christmas Eve, didn't he?!" Sirius asked for the millionth time.  
  
"Yes, we know." Remus said. "Where is Jack?"  
  
"I have no idea" Arthur Weasley replied.  
  
On the shore closest to Azkaban stood a few members of the Order of the Phoenix, which were starting to freeze to death. Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Nymphadora Tonks, Iris Rose, Arthur Weasley, Mundungus Fletcher, Kingsley Shacklebolt and Percy Weasley were eagerly awaiting the arrival of other Order members. Of course it had to be an 'in' operation, no Ministry involved! They weren't supposed to let the Ministry -and therefore Voldemort- know their exact schemes. But there were a few Aurors in Azkaban too, just in case.  
  
"Black dragon, fly high, spit your red flame" they heard a waaay too jolly song for their mood from behind some trees, closing in on them.  
  
"Are you out of your mind?!" came another voice, the unmistakable voice of an angry Severus Snape. "Dragons?!"  
  
"Bringing death where he met life! And right there holy blood will flow"  
  
Two people came next to the Order members: one of them was of course Severus Snape, looking quite murderous and the second was Jack Towers, looking careless and happy.  
  
"Severus, what's going on?" asked Tonks, seeing him nearly ready to kill Towers.  
  
"The idiot has brought two dragons with him! The beasts are untamable, and yet he brings them here!"  
  
"Now, now, Severus, they are untamable, but they are good friends. And helpers" the. 'idiot' replied.  
  
"What are you talking about?!" asked Arthur.  
  
Towers smiled and whistled. Two dragons flew out of the trees and near the Order members. They were quite small, compared to many of their relatives. One of them was a seven meter long brown lizard-like dragon and the other was a five meter long red dragon.  
  
"What the-"said Tonks.  
  
"Beloved magic princess, they now have to pay and then we'll fly together!" Towers sang cheerfully. "They're here to help. And, no, Sev, it was not I who tamed them and brought them here."  
  
"Call me Sev one more time and I swear you will end up rotten, cremated and buried six feet underground in three seconds" Snape warned, glaring at him.  
  
"That's what you said last time" Towers commented, without sounding the least bit concerned.  
  
"What do you mean it wasn't you who brought them here?" asked Sirius. "Then who-"  
  
He was cut off by Towers.  
  
"The brown one is a friend of mine, he came from his own free will. The red one is a great friend of a Lady to whom I owe a lot. She has asked him to come and he has agreed. These dragons are old types of dragons, my friends. They come from old times and I'm sure you've all heard the legends with dragons as intelligent as human beings. Well, here they are!"  
  
Percy shook his head and Snape made a disapproving noise. Most of the others were thrilled.  
  
"And how did you get to be friend with a dragon?" asked Snape.  
  
Two pops! could be heard and they all looked in the direction of the sound. The Weasley twins were there, looking mischievous.  
  
"What's the discussion topic?" Fred asked.  
  
"How I befriended dragons" Jack answered, jollily. "Severus asked"  
  
"The same way you became friends with your cauldrons, I expect" George said, looking thoughtful.  
  
"He spent a lot of time listening to them, caring about them." Fred continued.  
  
"Talking to them, calling them names and lovingly petting them." George said.  
  
The twins never got to finish as they were chased around by the angry Cauldron Master. Kingsley asked himself how on Earth they still managed to be happy, although they were going to repel an attack on Azkaban. Towers was smiling. They'd be winning this battle, that was sure. But first... He turned towards Rose.  
  
"Cheering Charm?"  
  
She smiled sheepishly and nodded.  
  
"Me and Tonks were first here" she said. "And it is Christmas after all. We thought a good charm on this area would be a perfect gift."  
  
He chuckled.  
  
"Yes. So, what do we do about the Dung Eaters?"  
  
It was her turn to chuckle.  
  
"Well, we've got it all planned, as you know. So, all we have to do is wait for our friends to come and then wait for our enemies. Oh, wait!"  
  
"There's a lot of waiting involved, I see" he said, smiling, while she started to say something.  
  
"The dragons we haven't thought of. How can we communicate with them tell them what we want quickly?"  
  
Towers at the two dragons.  
  
"They understand us. The wizards' main problem with dragon breeding is that they don't consider them intelligent beings, well not as intelligent as humans. Most of them are just as intelligent as owls, for example. Just very uncooperative. But there are some with human or higher than human intelligence and those make wise choices. The two of them are in this last category and they understand human speech. Therefore, it won't be a problem to pass them instructions and they can easily tell between friends and enemies."  
  
"Aha" she said. "Hey, look, Severus stopped chasing them around!"  
  
It was true. The Weasley twins were smiling deviously at each other while Severus was catching his breath. There was a pop! and Minerva McGonagall Apparated.  
  
"Dragons!" she cried, surprised.  
  
"Yes, our own two helping dragons" Towers replied. "When are Dumbledore and Hagrid coming?"  
  
"Soon" she answered. "Funny, I feel less stressed about the battle now that I'm here"  
  
Rose and Tonks exchanged a knowing look. There was a pop! and Albus Dumbledore Apparated. He looked over his glasses at the two dragons.  
  
"Has Hagrid arrived?" he asked.  
  
"No, these fine dragons are my date for today" Towers answered.  
  
The dragons looked at him as if he'd grown another head, then at each other. The red one let itself lie on the snow and a hiss was heard as some snow melted under him because of the heat radiating from him.  
  
"I consider them quite hot" the man added upon seeing this. The dragon just got its head up and blew some fire in his direction, making him laugh. "Very hot"  
  
"Has anybody cast a Cheering Charm around here, by any chance?" Dumbledore asked. Rose and Tonks exchanged a sheepish look and then turned to the Headmaster.  
  
"That would be us"  
  
"It explains a lot" Dumbledore said, looking around at the others who were starting to joke. Snape was the only one not joking or smiling. The twins were laughing their hearts out.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
By nightfall, however, the charm's effect wore off and they all sat together, near a fire -"If we have two dragons, why freeze to death?" as the twins had put it-. The dragons in question were waiting patiently for the signal that they should go as fast as possible to the prison.  
  
"How much more will it take?" asked Tonks.  
  
"Patience" Towers said.  
  
"And constant vigilance" said Mad Eye Moody.  
  
Kingsley lifted a small ball up in the air and looked through it.  
  
"Nothing wrong yet"  
  
"Shouldn't we go to Azkaban and wait there?" asked Minerva. "Albus?"  
  
"Not yet" the man answered. "Could one of you dragons fly up and see what's going on?" The brown one nodded and flew up in the air. "And Apparating in Azkaban is impossible, due to all the protection charms. They would have to come from land or sea. Remus and Sirius are guarding the sea, as you know and on land we have Iris and Severus now"  
  
Minerva nodded and they all sat in silence when they heard a small noise from the trees. They all turned and got ready to strike when they saw it was Snape.  
  
"They are coming from the land. They will be here in about ten minutes. Iris knows, she's watching them."  
  
The dragon also returned.  
  
"Go get Sirius and Remus, please" Dumbledore said towards it and it flew quietly over the sea.  
  
"We're too few, we're too few, what do we do?" Tonks started saying, sounding maybe a bit panicked.  
  
"Whoa, it'll be alright" Towers said, watching her despair. "Dedalus and Mundungus are used to wreaking havoc on their own, you know"  
  
"I heard that!" Dedalus said. "I hope you meant it in a good way!"  
  
"Of course" Towers said, smiling and put off the fire.  
  
Tonks looked towards the forest and saw -just for a moment- something there. But nah, it couldn't be anything. She must have imagined it. In less than a minute, however, Iris came from the forest.  
  
"They're coming this way" she said. "I followed them as much as I could, but they heard me. I had to come back."  
  
"It is not a problem. They will be here soon, anyway" Dumbledore said.  
  
Sirius and Remus returned with the dragon and they all hid behind stones and trees for protection, not forgetting to cast a few last-minute shields. They all waited, the sounds of the nearby sea and the occasional cry of sea birds being the only things that could be heard. Otherwise, no human voice, no sound of footsteps could be heard. The wind was blowing lightly through the trees, making the snow easily fall down from them, one flake at a time. So quiet, so peaceful. And then all hell broke loose.  
  
Apparently, the 20 Death Eaters knew about their plans and didn't waste any time in being surprised by the attacks that came from nowhere. Spells were shooting in all directions, reflecting upon shields. But what the Death Eaters did not know was that the Order of the Phoenix had two dragons! Their mouths hanged open when they saw the two beasts flying in the air and some of them were shot down with stupefying spells. And the fact that the Order had Dumbledore didn't make matters worse, either.  
  
It was over soon, despite the way it had begun and all 20 Death Eaters were tied up.  
  
"It was too easy!" Fred said jollily.  
  
"Where are the Lestranges?" Sirius asked, confused. "And Voldemort? Where is he? He was bound to come."  
  
Dumbledore looked thoughtful.  
  
"Maybe this was the first wave?" Tonks suggested.  
  
"No." Towers said.  
  
Suddenly, Moody jumped up.  
  
"Azkaban!"  
  
They all stared at the prison and saw lights shooting everywhere on the small island.  
  
"It was a trap!" Rose cried.  
  
"SHIT!" Towers cried. "On brooms!"  
  
They all got on their brooms, the dragons shooting fast in front of them. The prison was lighted as it was during daytime. Maybe if it wouldn't have been such a desperate situation, they would have been surprised by Towers' cry. It was not often the man lost his temper or swore loud enough for the whole world to hear.  
  
The Order of the Phoenix got in record time to the prison and jumped off the brooms. There, they had to face what they had feared: Death Eaters and various magical creatures. They stated fighting, the dragons blowing fire on everything until it looked like a picture from hell.  
  
From a trap door came Voldemort himself, looking like a king over darkness, a real Dark Lord, tall and pale, red eyes shining in the darkness. He directed his servants with only movements of the arm, cool and calm, easily avoiding curses and shooting back a few, mostly Avada Kedavra's. Luckily, nobody was hit the killing curse, although some had to suffer because of the Cruciatus. Dumbledore managed to get to him and they started dueling, away from all others.  
  
"I thought I killed you!" cried Belatrix when she got face to face with Sirius.  
  
"Yes, you did" he answered and shot a stupefying curse which she easily ducked.  
  
"Crucio!" She cried, but he got out of the way.  
  
"Expalliarmus!" he cried in reply, before she could open her mouth to say a new curse. She was hit fully and he smiled. "Stupefy!"  
  
She fell on the floor with a thump! And he grinned. There went his killer.  
  
"Back, Black?" asked a voice and he lifted his eyes.  
  
"Why, Malfoy, I had no idea you were a poet" he said. "Stupefy!" Lucius jumped out of the way.  
  
"Have you no creativity? Impedimenta!"  
  
Sirius ducked.  
  
"Tarantalegra!"  
  
Lucius Malfoy got hit fully and Sirius asked himself, like many others before him probably did, why couldn't he have used a different curse on him, like a petrifying one or a stupefying one or something which would affect him more. But, it was fate. Meanwhile, Lucius was dancing around, trying to get himself to stop. Sirius was just about to stupefy him when something growled at him from behind. He turned around only to see a nundu.  
  
"Oh, boy." he said, color draining from his face. "Stupefy?"  
  
The nundu ducked the curse and attacked.  
  
"HELP!" Sirius cried, the animal too quick for him. His wand shot some green stars that hit the nundu, making it draw back a little. "I can do that?" the Animagus asked nobody in particular. "Petrificus Totalus!"  
  
Surprisingly it worked. He was just about to turn and see what had happened to Malfoy senior when he was hit by a curse and blacked out.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"You ok, Sirius?" a voice asked.  
  
"No" he truthfully answered. "Where am I?"  
  
"On top of Azkaban" the female voice answered. "It's over now."  
  
"Who won?" he asked.  
  
"Nobody" she answered and he got up and looked at her. Iris.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"They fled soon after you were down, many of the ex-prisoners escaping. It was their plan."  
  
"How many losses do we have?" he asked and she let her head down.  
  
"Three of the Aurors are dead and the rest of them badly injured. One of the dragons died, too. The brown one. You and I are ones of the very few who don't have any wounds."  
  
He felt his heart sink.  
  
"And who did we capture?"  
  
"Not many. And the ones we caught in the battle at the forest were freed, our guards-"  
  
'We left guards?' Sirius asked himself, surprised.  
  
"-were overwhelmed by the Death Eaters. Luckily they weren't killed"  
  
"Who were the guards?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Emmeline, Sturgis and Hestia" she answered and Sirius recalled that they had never left. "Dumbledore told them to stay."  
  
"Sneaky bastards" Sirius muttered.  
  
"Yes, they are."  
  
She went close to him and sat down.  
  
"But it's over now. It'll be alright" she said and then muttered:"I hope".  
  
Around them, people were recovering from the battle, inversing curses, healing each other as well as they could. Dumbledore had his hands full helping everybody. The bodies of the three dead Aurors were lying somewhere around.  
  
"It will be alright" Sirius reassured her and got up and went to help others. She nodded and got up herself.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
It had been one lousy Christmas at Hogwarts. First, nearly all the Professors were missing -apparently some were going home and some were called at the Ministry- and Flitwick had to hold the speech. The kids were asking themselves what had happened to Dumbledore, McGonagall, Towers and Snape, the four most impressive wizards -and witch- in Hogwarts. Hagrid was missing, too. And so was Sinistra. And Sprout. The feast ended in a feeling of awkwardness.  
  
"How do you think it'll end?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Not good" came the reply from Ron. "And where are the teachers?"  
  
"The ones in the Order are probably at Azkaban" Amala said.  
  
"But what about Sprout? And Sinistra?"  
  
"Sprout has a nephew and Sinistra is off to spend a while in Norway" Hermione answered. "Flitwick told me."  
  
The others nodded. They were in the Gryffindor common room, at about midnight. The fire was burning merrily in the fireplace.  
  
"I wish I knew what was going on there" Harry said.  
  
"That makes two of us, mate" Ron said.  
  
"Actually, four" Hermione said. "You think we're not curious?"  
  
"Not just curious" Amala said.  
  
They spent a few moments in silence.  
  
"Hey, why the sad faces?" asked somebody from another part of the room.  
  
"Nothing, Jane" Hermione answered the first year Gryffindor.  
  
"No, tell me!" she pleaded.  
  
Hermione was about to say something when Amala answered quickly:  
  
"My grandmother is very sick and will probably die soon."  
  
"Oh, my!" the girl said. "I'm sorry"  
  
"Don't worry" Amala said and tried to smile. "I'm glad I got to know her well. She was a great Seer. She Saw the future and things around her. She even taught me a few things."  
  
"You sound as if you were close to her" Jane said, her brown eyes looking into Amala's. "I'm sorry"  
  
"She said she wasn't afraid of death. I'm not either, but I'm going to miss her. I really am, she was a wonderful woman."  
  
Jane nodded.  
  
"You should go to bed, Jane" Hermione said. "It's late"  
  
"Yes" the girl said. "Goodnight"  
  
"You can cook up a story fast!" Ron said admiringly.  
  
"Thanks, but it wasn't totally cooked up. My grandma was a Seer, we were close, but she died this summer."  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry" Ron said.  
  
"Don't be" Amala said and smiled. "I'm over it and I know she's moved on"  
  
"How?" asked Harry.  
  
"I have been in Death myself, remember?"  
  
"Oh, right" Harry answered.  
  
Suddenly there was a cough and they all turned to the fireplace.  
  
"Hi!" said a coughing Sirius. "I hate ash" he mumbled.  
  
"How did it go?" Ron asked.  
  
"Quite bad, but it could've been worse. We lost three Aurors and. You know about the attack?!"  
  
"Long story, don't ask" Ron answered while the others glared at him.  
  
"Riiiiight." Sirius said. "So, we lost three Aurors, most of the Death Eaters escaped, including Lucius Malfoy, and Towers brought two small dragons one of which was killed. The guy's really depressed because of it, won't accept any comfort."  
  
"You had dragons?!" Hermione said. "But they're hard to tame and how did you."  
  
"Special type of dragons"  
  
"And what did you mean by 'lost' three Aurors? You don't mean."  
  
"Unfortunately, I do, Hermione. They died."  
  
They all looked sad at Sirius.  
  
"The bastard wanted to take away the joy of the holidays by attacking now. He did it" the man in the fireplace said. "I'll go now, I have some guests to take care of. Goodnight"  
  
"Goodnight, Sirius" they replied.  
  
They looked at each other sadly before they went to bed. What a happy Christmas it was.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
The next day the news was found out. The 'Daily Prophet's front page had the title 'Attack on Azkaban, three dead Aurors, escaped prisoners'. At the teachers' table, Dumbledore looked sad, McGonagall was looking tired and sad, Snape was his usual dark self, with the exception of being quiet. Towers looked distraught. However, at a time during the meal, he pulled himself together and then went to Harry, Ron, Hermione and Amala to tell them they should meet for a training session. The four nodded.  
  
After lunch, they went to his classroom, where they found him sitting on the chair.  
  
"Hello" they said and he replied with a nod.  
  
"I assume that you know most details about last night, right?"  
  
"Yes, sir" Harry answered.  
  
"Good. Has Sirius contacted you, Harry? He said he wanted to, but he also had to take care of Mundungus, Dedalus and Iris who will spend a while at the headquarters."  
  
"Yes, he did. He told me about the Aurors and about a dragon."  
  
Towers looked at them.  
  
"Really? He told you about him? Terrible death, he had. Terrible"  
  
The four looked at each other.  
  
"How did he die?" Harry asked.  
  
"Take a seat" the Professor responded. "Do you know in which way you can kill a dragon so you cannot hurt any other living being, even if you miss your target?"  
  
"No" they answered, including Hermione.  
  
"Not many do. It is an old spell that can only affect dragons. An ancient spell which was nearly lost in time, a spell not even half of the dragon caretakers have ever heard exist and less than a quarter know something about it. It was used a lot once, but then it fell into disgrace. Can one of you tell me what a dragon's body is composed of?"  
  
Hermione nodded.  
  
"It has a reptilian body heated by an inner fire situated close to the heart and therefore it can survive the coldest days."  
  
"Correct" Towers said. "The fire is not situated there, however, like people think. It barely comes out through that place. Otherwise it is an inner fire, which is in their soul, if you could say that. Its physical manifestation is that ball of fire that never goes out and that is constantly renewed by the soul fire. If you wish, imagine a dragon with its entire body of fire and that way you will see his fiery image, the one that keeps it alive, and which is only a different body. Do you understand?"  
  
"No" Harry answered truthfully and Towers sighed.  
  
"Very well, then, I'll explain again, differently. You have seen ghosts, right?"  
  
"Of course" they answered.  
  
"Well, the ghosts are other bodies, immaterial bodies of their owners. So, you have physical bodies and ghost-like bodies yourselves. Right now, you are only conscious of your physical, material bodies, because your other bodies follow your physical one."  
  
"What do you mean 'other bodies'? I thought you said one body" Ron said.  
  
"You have other bodies too, but that is not the case here. So, as you have ghost bodies, the dragons have a fire body. The dragons are special creatures and have the power of using the fire in that body to heat themselves up and blow it out physically. Do you understand?"  
  
"Yes" Harry answered.  
  
"So, if you want to kill a dragon, you have to freeze his inner fire. It can be done with a spell. A cursed spell, dark magic, I tell you. It is 'dragonivaria', the most feared one of all dragons. Hit by the spell, a dragon's fire starts to freeze and it loses its fire-based life."  
  
"Oh, my" Hermione said.  
  
"It is a known fact that it is the worst way a dragon could die. It goes through great torture freezing like that. It feels its life going away and can do nothing. Nothing at all. "  
  
"Nothing can be done against the spell?" Harry asked.  
  
"It's blood needs to be mixed with another species, preferably a warm- blooded one, the more powerful the better, the more blood, the better. Then, it can rely for life on something else, not just itself. It is a long theory why it can, so I won't say it all here. But otherwise it freezes. And such a fate my dragon friend had. I tried to reach him, but the spell's effect was fact, it was cast by Voldemort himself. I never got in time and he died."  
  
The four looked at the sad man.  
  
"I wanted to burn his body, but I don't think I will. I will probably take his blood and skin and teeth and use them for things I need. He doesn't care anymore and I know that once I'm out of this body I don't care if I get buried, cremated or studied for scientific purposes"  
  
They watched him as he leaned against his chair and a few words escaped his mouth, in a slow mutter, sounding a bit as if he was singing.  
  
"Dust in the wind, all we are is dust in the wind. Nothing lasts forever but the Earth and sky. It slips away."  
  
A few words were lost, him speaking too low, lost in his trail of thoughts.  
  
"Professor?" Hermione asked after a while.  
  
"Oh, right, right." he said, got up and started telling them about the things they would learn that day.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"My Lord, thank you for rescuing us" Lucius Malfoy said.  
  
"I didn't do it for you!" the man said. "And next time don't dare get into such trouble, or I will kill you myself"  
  
"No sir."  
  
"And our next problem. What do we do with the thorn in our backs? What do we do with Towers?"  
  
"Kill him" Lucius said.  
  
"But how? Barty? Do you know?"  
  
"No, Master"  
  
"Master, I think I have a suggestion" Belatrix said.  
  
"Well?!"  
  
"We should really meddle with everything. Change memories, put clues that lead to him as the enemy of the Light side. Then he will be an outlaw and therefore easier to get."  
  
"We tried that"  
  
"But then we weren't here and this time we can all work together"  
  
"Then do it"  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
It was the 25th of December and it was a pretty dark dinner at Hogwarts. The attack on Azkaban with the three dead was enough to bring everybody down, especially since many Death Eaters had escaped. Well, everybody except the Slytherins who seemed pretty jolly, including Draco Malfoy of course.  
  
Towers suddenly entered the Hall, looking very jolly.  
  
"Merry Christmas!" he cried to the Hall and everybody just gaped. Was this the man that looked so down that very same morning?! "I don't know about you, but I'm not going to let an idiot ruin my holidays!"  
  
The Slytherins didn't seem too pleased with the use of 'idiot' in that sentence -referring, most likely, to Voldemort- and were still shocked by the weird behaviour of the man, who just went at the teachers' table and sat down, merrily putting food into his plate, everybody watching his every move.  
  
"Is this the same man who seemed destroyed only, oh, two hours ago?" Ron asked.  
  
"Maybe he's cracking?" suggested Harry.  
  
Amala looked at him thoughtful.  
  
"Maybe, but I think he was crazy from before, so."  
  
"Point there" Ron agreed.  
  
"Think he's over his problems?" asked Neville who had surprisingly remained there over the holidays.  
  
The four looked at the merry Professor who was stuffing himself.  
  
"If you ask me, he just cracked" Ron said.  
  
Dumbledore seemed to think something over and then started chatting with Towers, gradually becoming more and more jolly himself. Some other teachers started talking themselves and soon the whole teachers' table was "towerized" as Ron had put it. Gradually, the students started talking themselves and the atmosphere got warmer and warmer.  
  
Harry and Amala were chatting about past Christmases when they heard somebody hitting a glass with a spoon, sign that the certain somebody wanted to make a speech. He looked around and saw Towers standing up. When he saw that he got the attention, he put the spoon out and waved his wand, saying "Quietus".  
  
"My dear colleagues and students" he said. "I will tell you one of my secrets: why I'm so cheerful, when such dreadful things have just happened."  
  
The room waited to see what he would say.  
  
"I know I have not said much about myself, even if I might have let the impression that I have. I like war, my friends. I was born under the sign of war, under the star of battle. I know every trick and every secret and if by any chance there are some things I don't know, then I learn quick. And I'll share some of my knowledge with you: there is no war without a purpose. There is no battle without a crazy wish behind it. And now we face a madman who wants to take over the world because we don't want it to happen."  
  
Some of the Slytherins glared at Towers when he said 'madman'.  
  
"And I'll tell you another thing: a war has victims, chosen by ways I've no idea about. There is nobody safe. Anybody can die, nobody's safe, nobody's immortal. Oh, well, almost nobody's immortal. I would like to propose a toast: to Death! To Death, the one who is there to receive victims when they are defeated and to help them move on! To Death!"  
  
He raised his glass towards the Hall, everybody glaring at him. To Death? Who on Earth would toast to Death? And who would drink for Death? They were soon answered. Except for Dumbledore, of course who had already raised his glass.  
  
"To Death!" they heard one lonely reply from the Gryffindor table. Amala had raised her glass too and toasted to Death.  
  
Towers smiled at her.  
  
"And I'd also like to propose a toast to Life, for she has the good sense to be always present everywhere, including in Death! To Life!"  
  
This time there were more raised glasses, including Amala's.  
  
"Remember, my friends, because I consider you all my friends, that you can never be defeated. Not even in death, not for real. Death means change, nothing more. It is a change of your life, not the end of it, although many see it as an end. It is an end of your lives in these bodies and the beginning of new adventures. Fear not anything in the world, for you are undefeatable. To you, my friends, to us!"  
  
"To us!" many replied. How the man had managed to make all these things sound good and jolly, it was beyond them.  
  
Towers bowed and sat down and then turned to McGonagall.  
  
"Minerva, do you think I drank maybe a bit too much?" he mischievously asked and she laughed.  
  
Soon after, Dumbledore shooed them all to bed and turned to Towers.  
  
"You have a gift with words"  
  
"No, I don't. I just manage to sound convinced and optimistic enough to convince others" the Professor answered.  
  
/*-/*-/*-  
  
Author's Note: A toast to Death, my friends! For she is only a change. At least that's how I see her. A change in life and lost memory.  
  
Thank you:  
  
Babyjayy: Thank you.  
  
The Red Dragons Order: the bloody bastard is acting exactly as expected. And I don't think he can go even more crazy, since he did make himself a combination between human and a snake. Heard a good joke about that, too: Harry and Tom Riddle are in the Chamber of Secrets ad Harry says: "You're Lord Voldemort?! But the last time I saw you, you were a horrible thing, a snake." and Tom sighs and stops him. "Yes, well, when you go to Michael Jackson's surgeon, what else can you expect?". And about Towers: there are a few huge differences between him and Rex. One of them is that he's not Harry (lol). Others will be revealed.  
  
Naomie: Thank you  
  
Other reviewed chapters:  
  
Well, I had no idea where to put these, so I'll just have to place them here.  
  
Mrs. Longbottom & Mrs. Malfoy: Thank you. 


	21. Things to Know

Disclaimer: Own what you don't know from J.K.'s books.  
  
Dedication: to the Red Dragons Order -look what you made me write!-  
  
Chapter 21: Things to Know  
  
"It is time I teach you everything I know, for the elders will not listen to me" said Towers, pacing around his classroom, in front of the students he usually called for extra lessons. "Unfortunately, I have not much time."  
  
"What do you mean, Professor?" asked Draco Malfoy.  
  
"All my knowledge, my."  
  
"No, no, about the not-much-time part" he said.  
  
Towers raised an eyebrow.  
  
"I'm afraid I'll have to leave sooner or later. Not many people like me anymore and I don't want to affect Hogwarts. Plus, I've been neglecting some of my other duties while I thought here and it's time I go back to them again."  
  
The students stared at him. There were two new people added to their group, two first years, that was. They were both Gryffindors, Jane Chase and Mark Evans. At first, the elder ones disapproved but then they were kindly reminded that the 'Gryffindor trio', as Harry, Hermione and Ron were starting to be known, had managed to save the Philosopher's Stone in their first year. So, now they were watching the dizzyingly pacing Professor and wondering why he talked so weird.  
  
"One of the most important things in war is never to expect your enemy to be fair. Ever. Got it?"  
  
"Yes, sir" they answered.  
  
"Second, you need to be cool enough to face your fears and do your best. You have no idea how many people lost in battles because their enemies were simply imposing and gave them the impression that they couldn't possibly be defeated. Understand?"  
  
"Yes, sir"  
  
Towers suddenly stopped pacing and looked at them, suddenly sadness on his face.  
  
"Look at you, just teens." he whispered. "What awful times we're in."  
  
"I'm not just a teen!" Draco proudly said and the Professor smiled, amused.  
  
"Of course not, but you are a teen, right? And you have not yet got to the point where you can say you have loads of experience, now can you? But it will come. I do not question your skills, your power, your will. I only say that you have not yet seen all that is to be seen, you have not yet felt all that is to be felt. You are young, but it is not a great disadvantage."  
  
"Disadvantage?!" Draco said, outraged.  
  
"Ah, young Malfoy, do something with that pride, will you?" asked Towers. "It is a disadvantage since you have very little experience and don't you dare say anything now. In one year from now tell me if I were right or wrong."  
  
Draco closed his mouth.  
  
"Good. Remember to trust your hearts, young ones and don't forget to fight bravely and do your best. Have faith, always. For those who need it, there is always help. There is always a way!"  
  
The students looked at each other, Draco extremely skeptic, Harry confused, Hermione thoughtful, Amala happy, Ron with a 'teacher-has-gone-crazy' look, Luna dreamy, Jane smiling mischievously, Mark determined, Neville also determined, but a bit more scared, Ginny brave, but also afraid.  
  
"And now, how about practicing dueling techniques?" Towers asked. "I'll conjure up a few enemies"  
  
The students watched awed as he took out his wand and started saying muttering spells, conjuring something. Soon, the 'somethings' started looking like humans and later they were perfectly detailed.  
  
"How did you-" Ron asked when the figures started moving like humans. Towers sighed.  
  
"Yeah, I guess I should explain, huh?" he asked. "Well, it's easy to understand. I can't actually do this, not by myself, but I can use my Master's power. He lets those of us who need it to do it. I sincerely love to feel his power when I'm using it. I get a certain feeling of being able to do everything I want when I use it. You could say I am a very lucky man. Or a very unlucky one, for I have to do many things."  
  
"What kind of things?" Harry asked.  
  
"I have to go around, find out things, protect the light. In elder times, he used to do it himself, but ever since I met him, not even fifty years ago -and yes, meeting him made me age way slower- he lets me use his power and tells me what I should do. He said that I am a lot like him and he loves me like a father. But even though he let me use his power in the first place in order to allow me to fight for the light side, I know that if I ever said I wouldn't want to listen to his orders anymore he would still let me use them. But the thing is, I like to do what he tells me to do. You get quite addicted to the adventurous life. But now, on to your training!"  
  
The dark figures seemed to come to life fast and the students forgot their questions and amazement.  
  
"Use anything you want on them" Towers said. "And beware the hexes!  
  
It was incredible! The conjured-up forms seemed to be real as they sent curses and hexes and as they screamed furiously. Soon enough, the conjured up enemies were lying on the floor, some hit with hexes, but a few of the real people in the room also had problems.  
  
"I think you should practice on your target, Jane" Towers said, while putting the fire on his robes off and repairing them. "You wouldn't want to burn your allies to a crisp, now would you?"  
  
"Sorry, Professor" she said, with that certain look somebody has on their face when they do something like breaking a vase or a plate and expecting the sound to boom any second.  
  
"No problem" he answered. "Gah, I'm loosing my reflexes."  
  
Neville was just removing the 'Locomotor mortis' from himself. Amala was in huge trouble with one special hex. Oh, well, combination of hexes.  
  
"Good punishment for somebody, hitting them with the jelly legs jinx and then the whitening spell! I look like an octopus!"  
  
"Duopus" Towers laughed. "Octopus means with eight legs, while you still have two!"  
  
"And the water poured on my head was great, too" she said as Hermione was removing the spells from her and drying her.  
  
Harry, who had quickly managed to get the cheering charm off him, was laughing at his own will, while Ron was still dancing. Surprisingly, Draco was unharmed. But, soon enough, everybody was back to normal and Towers smiled pleasantly from his perfectly clean and unharmed robes.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
It was the last weekend before the school started and Harry, Ron, Hermione and Amala had decided to go to the room they had found and read different books and learn as much as they could. Well, Hermione had decided that. The others were forced to join her, no matter how much they complained about being tired after the lesson with Towers.  
  
Now in the mentioned room, Harry and Ron were talking about the next Quiddich match -programmed in March- and were pretending to be studying the 'very interesting and useful books' as Hermione had put it.  
  
"Yeah, I guess the Slytherins will be smashed" Harry said, turning the pages of the book in front of him.  
  
"Definitely" Ron answered.  
  
Harry looked at the pages in front of his very nose, flipping through them, when a few words attracted his attention. He stopped flipping the book pages and read the passage.  
  
"The Green Flame Torch- a very powerful magical object first found in 3400 B.C. Nobody knows its origins. It is said to appear whenever darkness threatens to conquer the world, by its own free will. It cannot be found by darkness and the one who finds it will become its bearer for as long as it will remain with him. In order to make sure that the right bearer finds it, it will leave clues to itself that are only noticeable by him.  
  
Once in possession of the bearer, he can summon it from a large range -but necessarily from the same room, if the doors are closed- and use it. One of the weirdest characteristics of the Green Flame Torch is that it will not only give power to its bearer, but will eventually cast spells itself, although nobody knows what spells it might cast.  
  
When it decides that its meaning is over, it will disappear."  
  
"Guys, come see this" Harry said and they all looked at the passage. "Do you think it will appear now?"  
  
"Maybe" Hermione said. "You know it's said to be around Hogwarts?"  
  
"Yes, I've heard that" Harry answered.  
  
Amala looked at the others, opened her mouth, closed it and gave a small "hmmm".  
  
"What?" asked Ron.  
  
"The Torch hasn't been found yet, right?" she asked.  
  
"Right" Hermione said.  
  
"Then, how can people say it's around Hogwarts?! Isn't it peculiar?"  
  
"You're right!" Hermione said. "Where did we hear this from?"  
  
"I don't know" Harry answered. "I can't remember."  
  
"I can" Ron said. "Dad mentioned it. He knows about it from the Order"  
  
"And where does the Order know from?" Hermione asked.  
  
"I don't know that" Ron said. "It was just said. Dad said he'd heard it on the last meeting. I really have no clue. It was in the summer. Do you think anybody remembers?"  
  
"Somebody must" Amala said. "And I have a perfect occasion to find out."  
  
"What occasion?!" Harry asked.  
  
"I have a date with Severus tonight. I have to be there." she said, looking at the watch and suddenly gaping. "Three minutes ago! Gotta go, see you!" she said and ran out the opening wall.  
  
"You know, it suddenly struck me how useful this relationship is" Ron said.  
  
"Your Slytherin side is waking up, huh?" Hermione asked and he glared at her murderously.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"I'm sorry I'm late!" Amala said, nearly jumping through the door.  
  
"Five points from Gryffindor, Mrs. Wright" said Severus, making her look better around the room, where she could -just now- see a few people. Thank God she hadn't added 'Severus' to 'I'm sorry'!  
  
"What is she doing here, Mr. Snape?" asked one of them, whom she immediately recognized as Cornelius Fudge.  
  
"She has a detention with me, Minister" he answered coolly.  
  
"We don't have time for this" Fudge said. "You shouldn't have called her now when."  
  
"If I recall it correctly, it was you who came by unexpected" Severus said. "Maybe I should contact Madam Trelawney and ask her to predict your next coming so that my personal life will not interfere with your plans?"  
  
Amala chuckled to herself. Yep, that was the ever sarcastic Severus Snape.  
  
"Your personal life?" Fudge asked. "I thought it was a detention"  
  
"It is munching on my time and I sincerely believe that it is therefore my personal life, as much as it is to live in this castle. Or would you say that I'm working 24 hours a day because I live at the very same place where I work-this castle?"  
  
"Um, no" the Minister of Magic said. "Well, you should go, Mrs."  
  
Amala nodded quickly and started to leave.  
  
"Not so fast!" Severus said, making her stop and she made sure she looked surprised but disappointed at the same time. "Go to my dormitory and there you will find, on the desk I have there, two bags of thorns, mixed up with grass and other things. Please sort them."  
  
She nodded.  
  
"Where is your dormitory, sir?" she politely asked.  
  
He explained the way to his dormitory -the official one, of course- and she left. Why he had sent her to his dorms was beyond her. He was probably in trouble with the Ministry and all and wouldn't finish until it was late. Well, he could come early.  
  
She entered the dormitory and saw that it was a quite comfortable room, with a double bed, a desk with a chair and a fireplace with two armchairs in front of it. On the desk there were three bags, out of which two had thorns in them and one was filled with grass and things that probably were at first mixed up with the thorns. She smiled. He really did think of everything.  
  
She started exploring the room, when Severus came inside.  
  
"I said that I was checking up if you blew my bedroom up or not" he said. "I must go back, but first."  
  
He went to his desk and opened a drawer, taking out a small orb and touched it with his wand. For her surprise, she heard the voices in Severus' office.  
  
"They can't hear anything here, but you can hear what goes on inside" he said.  
  
"Thank you" she said and watched him go. "Wait!"  
  
"Yes" he asked, turning from the door.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"I think you have the right to know" he said and left, shutting the door behind him.  
  
She smiled, feeling overly enthusiastic! He finally let her in one of his secrets! Yay! She collapsed on the bed and listened to the people in his office.  
  
"I think we should question him about it under Veritaserum" one man said.  
  
"We should indeed, but who's Veritaserum are we going to ask for? His? I haven't brought any" said another man.  
  
"Filthy spy!"  
  
So, that was it! They thought he was a spy!  
  
She heard the door slam.  
  
"The girl hasn't blown up anything yet and has managed to find the blasted things. I suppose she's smarter than she seems"  
  
She chuckled to herself. Yep, he was his usual self!  
  
"Maybe so, Snape. Now, back to our discussion. How do we know you're not a spy? What else do we have than your word for it?"  
  
"I teach at this very school and."  
  
"So did Quirrel" said Fudge.  
  
"Very well, then. Let us not fool around then. You have the same proof that you had last time."  
  
"Dumbledore's words do not matter much these days" a man said.  
  
"Wasn't he the one who said first that the Dark Lord has risen?"  
  
"Yes, but he is still human and humans make mistakes"  
  
"Test me under Veritaserum, then"  
  
"We don't have any"  
  
She smiled to herself.  
  
"I however do. I just never cease to wonder when the Ministry of Magic will actually come prepared for a questioning."  
  
"Was that an insult, Snape?" Fudge asked.  
  
"Of course not, Minister" Severus answered, voice dripping with sarcasm.  
  
"How do we know the Veritaserum is real?"  
  
Snape seemed to sigh.  
  
"You can test it yourself, Minister."  
  
"How do I know you won't poison me?"  
  
"I must admit it crossed my mind and intended to do it, since murdering the Minister of Magic while having witnesses and then having to run away from the castle is quite a good idea."  
  
She started laughing. Wow, if sarcasm would have been liquid, she was sure the whole castle would be flooded.  
  
"You drink it first!" Fudge said, deciding not to comment on the last statement.  
  
"Very well, sir. Let me just get it"  
  
There was a bit of silence in the room and then Snape seemed to return with the potion and give it to the Minister. All that she got out of a few moving noises and drinking noises.  
  
"My name is Cornelius Fudge and I am the Minister of Magic. I can't lie"  
  
"No kidding? I had no idea" Severus said. By now, the flood of sarcasm in the castle would have long united with the lake. More drinking noises.  
  
"And I was supposed to drink before you, but you have long forgotten, as I can see" Severus said. The flood of sarcasm must have flooded the Forest, too.  
  
"Are you a spy?" one of the other men asked.  
  
"I do not spy for the Dark Lord" Severus answered.  
  
'Would you look at that?!' Amala thought. 'He didn't say he wasn't a spy. He said he wasn't Voldemort's spy! I wonder.'  
  
"Are you positive?"  
  
"Minister, I have a weird feeling that I would know if I were the Dark Lord's spy"  
  
"Are you a spy?" asked the man again.  
  
"My black eyes haven't seen the Dark Lord since June, last year"  
  
Amala looked at the orb. Hmmm, there was something definitely wrong there.  
  
"Are you a spy? Yes or no?" asked the man again and Amala started asking herself whether there was something wrong there.  
  
"I spied on students in the castle in order to get them in trouble so I am a spy"  
  
Amala laughed. So, he was saying all the other things to hide this! But what if he wasn't hiding this? What if he was a spy?  
  
"If that is all, I'd like to go check on the student now"  
  
"Of course" Fudge answered. "Goodbye, Snape"  
  
"Goodbye" the Potion Master said and Amala heard the door opening and then closing. "They're gone. I'll be there quick" he said and she first gaped and then remembered that of course he knew she was listening! The door opened and then closed. She let the orb go and looked up at the ceiling from the comfortable position on the bed. What if he was a spy? Well, then he was for the light side! And he had finally let her see a secret of his. Well, if he was a spy, he was in constant danger, but then again, hadn't he always been? He could manage, he knew.  
  
In less than two minutes, Severus came in his bedroom. Of course he had had his reasons to give her the chance of listening what was going on! One: she wouldn't bug him, asking what had happened and two: she would probably be as thick as Minister & Co. and believe he wasn't a spy. That if Potter hadn't told her. But what he hadn't thought of was Amala's reaction.  
  
He had barely gotten through the door when he was hugged by the girl, a small "thank you" escaping her lips.  
  
"For what?" he asked.  
  
"For this" she answered. He was about to sneer, saying that she made no sense, but he understood what she meant. Instead, he just returned the embracement. Who knew she was going to react like this?  
  
After a while, she looked up to him, shyly. Somewhere in the back of his mind he registered that the Veritaserum's effect had probably faded away. It was supposed to after about ten minutes. Amala looked at him and then said, in a slow voice:  
  
"It's ok if you don't want to tell me."  
  
"Yes?" he asked.  
  
"Are you a spy?"  
  
"Didn't I answer that question?"  
  
"No, not really. You know what I mean."  
  
Yes, he knew. But what was he supposed to say: I impersonate Barty Crouch, please don't tell anybody? No, it was better for her not to know. But could he really tell her that? Could he just lie?  
  
"Please don't ask me questions" he replied. "I don't like it."  
  
She nodded and then got a mischievous look in her eyes.  
  
"Then, I won't" she said and started kissing his neck, making him look at her in surprise.  
  
"You are a weird creature" he said.  
  
"From you, I'll take it as a compliment" she replied. "But what do you mean by it?"  
  
Ah, yes, he spoiled it. Stupid, stupid, stupid. No, wait, he was never stupid.  
  
"You look so innocent, so pure, so childish and harmless. And the way you act now can hardly be described as 'perfectly innocent'!"  
  
"I'm innocent!" she said, looking innocently indeed at the walls. "I really am! I'm as pure as the dawn, Severus! What, you don't believe me?"  
  
He chuckled and she looked at him mock-surprised, her hands still behind his neck.  
  
"You actually chuckled and Hell hasn't frozen over yet!"  
  
Now, he actually started laughing. How she managed to be sarcastic while looking so angelic was beyond him. Weird creature, indeed.  
  
"Point proven" he said while she was starting to wonder if he had been hit by a cheering charm. Severus Snape, laughing?!  
  
/*-/*-/*-  
  
Harry yawned. It was a beautiful night, that was sure, but staying up 'till morning wasn't in his plans. Especially if the reason was listening to Hermione and on bickering. Well, theoretically they were staying up because Hermione had decided to share some information on the past presence of the Green Flame Torch, but they never got to that.  
  
He looked at his watch. Quarter to eleven and still no sign of Amala. He watched the bickering friends in front of him and he sighed. What was Amala doing?! Maybe she could get the two apart, he was tired of trying. It had already been what? Nearly two hours? Was she going to spend the night in Snape's headquarters? Ok, bad mental image, bad mental image! Ugh. Think of the fight between Ron and Hermione, try to get them apart.  
  
"Hey, guys, don't you think we should concentrate on the Green Flame Torch?" he asked for what seemed to be the millionth time.  
  
"Right, Harry" Hermione agreed. "Exactly as I told you we should, Ron"  
  
"What?! You blame it on me?!"  
  
"Of course. I said from the beginning we were here to talk about the Green Flame Torch!"  
  
"Yeah, and then you started arguing"  
  
"No, you were the one who started it"  
  
"Me?! Well, you said."  
  
"Guys!" Harry said. "Please, back to the topic!"  
  
"Right" the two of them said.  
  
"So, what we know is that it's around Hogwarts and that it would be of great help" Ron said.  
  
"How do we know it's around Hogwarts?" Harry asked. "Amala is right, nobody saw it, so."  
  
"Maybe they saw it but couldn't get it?" suggested Ron.  
  
"Maybe, but I don't think so" Hermione replied. "If they saw it, then they would have gotten it. It's a torch! It can't run away!"  
  
"Are you sure about that?" Ron asked. "All this appearing and disappearing means it has a life of its own and maybe it can even run away"  
  
Harry chuckled.  
  
"Yeah, a torch running around with somebody chasing it. No, I don't think that's it!"  
  
The other two chuckled a well. Nice mental image!  
  
"Maybe it was protected by many spells and wards?" Ron asked.  
  
"More likely" Hermione said. "But I don't know. I don't remember anything like this from those texts."  
  
"Right, show us the texts!" Harry said, remembering that Hermione had said that she had found a few texts about previous findings of the magical object. Hermione took out a few books and showed them passages.  
  
"Antiquity. Evil wizard trying to take over the world" she said and showed them a passage, which Harry started reading.  
  
"And there, next to the great Water Fall, between the mountains, there was the most beautiful sight my eyes have ever seen: in the fading light of the sunset, I saw a Torch floating over the falling water. It had a green flame sprouting up in the air, lightening everything so that all seemed to be more alive. Never have my eyes seen something of this greatness, never have I felt such power and as I stood watching it, I understood it had called me. I understood that the Phoenix I was following was an illusion the Torch had made. I have no doubt that it has a life of its own and I have no doubt it wants me to use it against the rising Darkness"  
  
"I couldn't find the author" Hermione said, "but that's not the point. Next, middle ages"  
  
"By the Great Light of the Sun itself! I have found the Green Flamed Torch, the most beautiful magical object I could see. It made me follow it down in the Earth, in the caverns, sending me voices only I could hear, voices I had thought long lost, voices of my friends that were dead. And now it tells me in a way I can't understand to use it for destroying evil."  
  
"No author again. And the next is recent, although I don't know from what year it is."  
  
"God knows how I managed to get this Torch, the Green Flame Torch, that is. I didn't think it existed, I thought it was just ramblings of old fools. It's not as impressive as one might think, studying the elder texts, but it is beautiful nevertheless and it does seem to have a life of its own. I wonder who created it. The story of finding it is simple: I followed the 'mystical signs' -yeah, right, they were just obvious signs, like white bricks on black walls. I wonder how come nobody before me got it-, signs that led me to the Torch, left in an old room in an old castle. I plan to use it against Grindewald's army, since Dumbledore will take care of the wizard himself. I'll guard it greatly, so that it won't be able to disappear after it serves its purpose. I heard it never disappears into thin air, so all I must do is be careful"  
  
"Skeptic, isn't he?" Ron asked.  
  
"Yep" Harry answered.  
  
Hermione was just about to say something when the portrait opened and a girl came in.  
  
"Hi, guys!" she said.  
  
"Hi, Amala" Harry answered, Hermione and Ron, muttering a "hi". "How was your, um, date?"  
  
"Fine. But do you know what's weird?" she asked.  
  
"What?" Harry said.  
  
"Two things actually. One: he received a visit from the Ministry, which questioned him under Veritaserum if he was a spy."  
  
"And?!" the other three asked, Harry wondering about the 'Barty Crouch' part Snape played.  
  
"He didn't answer directly. He said he was not a spy for Voldemort."  
  
"It's obvious he isn't then, the Veritaserum made sure he wasn't lying." Ron said, shivering after the name of 'Voldemort'.  
  
"Yes" she said. "But the person asked if he was a spy, no matter for what side, and he answered that he wasn't a spy for Voldemort" Ron shivered "and then he was asked again and he replied that, I quote, "My black eyes haven't seen the Dark Lord since June, last year". And again he was asked and he replied he spied on students in order to get them in trouble and therefore he is a spy. If you ask me, his replies were weird. What if he spies for Dumbledore? I asked him that, but he told me not to ask questions since he didn't like them. So asking about the Green Flame Torch was out of the question."  
  
"Then what did you do there so long?!" Harry asked. "it's eleven o' clock, it's way past curfew"  
  
"I had a 'detention' and guess what we did" she replied. "Well, after he got rid of the Ministry."  
  
"He just let you witness their meeting and the Ministry didn't object?" Hermione asked.  
  
Amala smiled mischievously.  
  
"He sent me to his bedroom where he had an orb through which you could listen to what happened in his office"  
  
"You were in Snape's bedroom?" Ron asked. "Ew. Is it slimy and dark?"  
  
She laughed.  
  
"No, it's not slimy, although I must say it's dark. But it's cozier than one might think. He even has a fireplace."  
  
"And did you remain there after he came back from his meeting?" Ron asked.  
  
"Yes, we did"  
  
"Ok, no more details, please. I think we all understand what you did in Snape's bedroom for two hours" Ron said. "And I don't want to think about that git in bed with someone"  
  
Amala burst into laughter.  
  
"Oh, no, we haven't. Poor you, Ron, you must have a pretty bad mental image"  
  
"As a matter of fact, I do" he answered. "Pleeeease let's change the subject"  
  
"You said two things were weird. Which was the second?" Hermione asked.  
  
"He laughed" she answered. "He laughed, just like a normal human being"  
  
"That is weird" Ron said.  
  
"Ok, so what were you doing before I came in?" she asked.  
  
"Talking about the Green Flame Torch" Hermione replied. "It seems that it has left signs for all the bearers to follow to it. And it always disappeared in weird circumstances. We were just getting to that. Here are the disappearing texts"  
  
She opened the books and showed them the disappearance from the Antiquity.  
  
"I had not known it would go away so soon. But once my enemy was defeated, it had served its goal. I put it in the room where I have my families fortune and went for my night sleep. The next morning, when I woke up, it was gone."  
  
"Weird" Ron said. "But maybe we should have expected this?"  
  
"Probably. Wait to see the next" Hermione said and showed them the next fragment.  
  
"By all Gods that exist, I have defeated my enemy! But as I cast the final spell, my wand in my right hand, the Torch in my left, its flames caught my spell in them, stretching to them and then shooting towards him with great speed. As they hit him, they spread on his body, not burning him, but catching him in a green ball. The next thing I knew, the flames uniting with the ball of green fire disappeared with the Torch itself and with him."  
  
"Creepy" Ron said.  
  
"I agree with you there" Harry answered. "Hermione, do you know anything about such a spell?"  
  
"I don't know. Maybe the Green Flame Torch took him with it wherever it left?"  
  
"Probably" Harry said. "What about the last guy?"  
  
"That's the nicest one" Hermione said, showing them the last passage.  
  
"I can't believe it happened this way! After I defeated the army Grindewald had with the help of the Aurors and the Green Flame Torch, I put it in a specially prepared room in order to be able to study it later. The weirdest part of all was that it managed to disappear, in spite of my preparations. When Dumbledore had the last battle with Grindewald, I was in the room where the Torch was. Its flame suddenly got bigger and transformed into a flaming sphere, in the middle of which I could see both wizards dueling. He flame got greater and greater, also including the Torch in it. I was fascinated. I saw Dumbledore cast the last spell on Grindewald -a stupefying spell, I believe- and he fell to the ground. At that moment, the Flame, because that was all that had remained from the Torch, got greater again and then it started to get smaller and smaller, quickly. Finally, it disappeared, leaving nothing behind. Grindewald killed himself a day later, using Muggle poison."  
  
"Smart Torch" Amala said. "Always getting away from the bearers."  
  
"Who do you think will get it this time?" Harry asked and Ron and Hermione shared a look. "What?"  
  
"Well, um, mate, you know. We thought it might be." Ron said, finishing the last sentence in a mumble.  
  
"Who?" Harry asked, confused.  
  
"You" Hermione answered.  
  
"Me?!" Harry said. "But, no, that's impossible!... Isn't it?"  
  
"Well, considering your personal record." Hermione said. "It's probably you. I mean, you're the one who'll defeat Voldemort or at least is supposed to and you're the one who always gets into things like these"  
  
"Supposed to defeat Voldemort?! Supposed to? You don't think I'll make it?!" Harry asked, fear and anger building up inside him. What if he lost?  
  
"We do, mate! We really do! But maybe he'll fall off a cliff and die, or something" Ron said.  
  
Amala just stood and looked at them, or rather past them, looking pensive. As they were arguing, she said, in a low voice:  
  
"I don't know. But whatever happens, I'll be with you guys. And I think we should research as much as possible."  
  
Hermione looked at her.  
  
"She's right. There's no need to argue" Hermione said. "Anyway, Harry, if you get the signs, you'll know it's you. Shall we go to bed?"  
  
"Sure" Ron answered quickly.  
  
Harry sighed.  
  
"Fine. I wish it won't be me."  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"I thought you were asleep" he said, looking at the beautiful woman coming in the kitchen.  
  
"Not yet. I can hear Mundungus snoring from two bedrooms away" she answered and he burst into laughter.  
  
"What about Dedalus?"  
  
"That man could sleep while the cannons were booming over his head and he also snores, just less"  
  
"My bedroom is away from theirs" he said.  
  
"Why, Sirius, I didn't know you made indecent proposals to women in your house!" she said, chuckling.  
  
"I meant we could switch bedrooms, but if that's how you understood it."  
  
"Why are you up?"  
  
"Couldn't sleep, Iris"  
  
The two were at number 12, Grimmauld Place, in his house and Iris was right: there was no way she could sleep with the two snoring -even if they were two and one bedrooms away-, especially when you weren't tired.  
  
"Want a. something?" he asked.  
  
"Something?" she asked, raising her eyebrow.  
  
"What do you offer somebody at two o' clock in the morning?" Sirius asked.  
  
"I don't know" she answered. "But if you have some tea."  
  
"Tea it is, then. Would you believe I even have it made?"  
  
"Really? The Seer in the Black family?" she asked playfully.  
  
"No, I was having the same thing" he answered and poured her a cup. She sat down on his left and picked up the cup.  
  
"Good tea"  
  
"Thanks"  
  
She drank a bit of her tea and then put it down on the table.  
  
"Do you usually stay up all night?" she asked.  
  
"No, it's a one night thing"  
  
"Then I'm lucky today"  
  
He looked at her, smiled and put his hand on hers. Maybe he should try something? Well, she did seem interested. How about a stupid line? Would that work? 12 years in Azkaban meant a loss, that was sure. But maybe he should try something, even if it was a stupid line. He looked her in the eyes, smiling playfully.  
  
"It might be old news" he said, in a soft voice "but I love you."  
  
She smiled. It was old news, ever since the elf had so kindly made it obvious to her. But it was good to hear it.  
  
"I know."  
  
He took his hand from hers and put his arm around her shoulders. Then, he leaned towards her and kissed her. She opened her mouth under his and started kissing him back.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Author's Note: Finished another chapter, mates! Well, not much to comment -maybe just that I actually remembered to put the Green Flame Torch in this story and also remembered my promise to the Red Dragons Order-. Oh, yeah, I managed to name this chapter right from the beginning. Almost. I changed its name once, from "Things That Need to Be Known" to "Things to Know". Random useless fact: when I started writing chapter 18 I called it first 'Christmas'. So it happened with 19, too.  
  
Thank you:  
  
Skillz: I hope this 'Amala and Snape' chapter satisfied your desire.  
  
James Rickard: Just thank you, the rest of my comments were in the e-mail.  
  
Anonymous_01: Well, if I had an 'Cho-Harry' relationship in mind, I probably would have written it that way, no matter what. And I don't think it'll be Hermione or Ginny. But it will definitely not be Cho, I agree with you there.  
  
The Red Dragons Order: I hope they won't cast Michael Jackson in the fourth movie, or they'll rate it PG-16! Well, the elves will have a part in this story, but about vampires. I don't know. I don't think so. Oh, and by the way, do you have any idea why Akvar keeps asking me to put a scene in our coauthored story where a few Red Dragons dance around in pink tutus? He seems to have an obsession. 


	22. The Light in the Darkness

Dedication: to the Red Dragons Order -look what's happened because of you!-  
  
Disclaimer: Own nothing.  
  
Chapter 22: The Light in the Darkness  
  
"Severus?" the girl asked.  
  
"Yes" he answered, looking her in the eyes.  
  
"I heard some rumors."  
  
"Yes?" he asked. Ok, was there no bright line left for him to say?  
  
"The Green Flame Torch has appeared again" she said.  
  
They were in his dormitory, sitting comfortably on an armchair. He, the Potion Master, powerful, her, the hyper, light, but very interesting creature. Now he was pondering her question. Was it even a question? He didn't know.  
  
"Maybe" he said.  
  
"I heard it is near Hogwarts" she said.  
  
"That is what I heard, too" he replied and kissed her neck, distracting her, sending a small shiver through her body.  
  
"Slytherin" she mumbled and then said louder "Where did you hear that from?"  
  
"A place I don't think you've heard of" he replied.  
  
"The Order of the Phoenix?" she asked.  
  
"How did you hear of that?" he asked, a bit surprised.  
  
"I'm the one who saved Sirius, remember?" she asked and he knew he could slap himself. Duh, she had to know! "So, who told you guys? Please, Severus"  
  
He thought it over for a moment. Should he tell her? Or not? Yes, no, yes, no, yes, no. Well, maybe she could prove of some help.  
  
"It was a woman who is now in the Order."  
  
"Iris Rose?" Amala asked.  
  
"How did you." he asked. The girl could've been a Ravenclaw!  
  
"You said she is now in the Order and Mrs. Rose is the only new member I could think of" she replied with a shrug. "It was a good guess, I see"  
  
"And since when do you know who the new members in the Order are?" Severus asked.  
  
"Since Harry talks to Sirius all the time" she replied.  
  
'Ah, I'm getting old' Severus thought. 'I can't seem to think as I did.' Something suddenly struck him. He was 39 now. That meant he was 23 years older than her. What was he doing? He was old enough to be her father! By the time she reached 25, he'd be almost 50! And she was so young. Maybe in time she'd get bored and look for somebody else. Without realizing he did so, he hugged her a bit tighter. He could live without her, of course. He just didn't want to.  
  
"Severus?" she asked and he realized she had said something.  
  
"Excuse me, what did you say?"  
  
"Where did Mrs. Rose know about the Torch from?"  
  
"I don't know" he replied. "But why do you ask?"  
  
She seemed to think it over for a moment.  
  
"It was a dilemma of mine. Nobody got the Torch, but somebody's seen it. Who would see it and not get it?" she asked.  
  
It was a good question. Maybe they should ask Iris. Or Dumbledore. But now, he had a somewhat better idea. Smiling a little, he kissed her neck and she turned her head to look at him. Such beautiful eyes! Not missing the moment, he reached for her lips. She seemed to smile under his lips and kissed him back. With a small movement, she turned a bit more towards him, putting one of her arms behind his neck.  
  
"I love you" she whispered when they got apart. Instead of replying, he reached for her lips again. But why, why did she have to be just 16? If she were 17, it'd be a bit more of a different situation. Ah, well, he could do with just kissing for a while.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Ron, Harry, Hermione and Amala were walking down the corridors of Hogwarts, towards their class when somebody rushed into them. The hurried man turned out to be Towers, looking in a hurry and maybe a bit despaired.  
  
"Sorry, I need to get to the limit of the Apparition wards soon" he said, pushing them aside and nearly running away.  
  
"I wonder what that was all about" Harry said, watching him go.  
  
"Me too" the others answered. The answer came soon. As if on cue, a voice could be heard:  
  
"No, wait, I still have to tell you! You will die before the end of the year, Jack! I saw the Grim and I tell you that you will die."  
  
The students looked at the talker. Harry noted he had never seen Trelawney -for it was her, the giant bug- walk so fast. She continued crying on her way.  
  
"And I tell you that a horrible thing will happen to you in the third month! A veil will be sent over you, making you look most horrible in front of others!."  
  
"The giant bug strikes again" Ron said, looking behind the woman. "and I've never seen her so obsessed!"  
  
They all watched as Trelawney was running down the corridors, students jumping out of her way at top speed. Quite an enjoyably sight.  
  
"So, Rose told them about the Torch" Hermione resumed their conversation.  
  
"Yep. Only question is: where did she know from?" Amala said.  
  
"Don't know that, but we need to find out" Harry said.  
  
"And soon. What do we have now?" Ron asked.  
  
"Um. Charms" Hermione said. "Tonight we must go find out everything we can in our room"  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Again, they were in the secret room at Hogwarts and it was night.  
  
"And where does this Torch appear?  
  
To see it you needn't be a Seer  
  
Though you will find along your way  
  
Signs that might be lost for all but they"  
  
"Hermione, that's useless" Ron said. "Nothing about how you can find it!"  
  
"But maybe we can find a way to understand how these signs will appear?" Hermione suggested.  
  
"Ask, you, who are right here:  
  
Are you forever lost in fear?  
  
Or have you the greatest courage  
  
To go on your path this way?  
  
If you are ready and brave,  
  
Take the path that is so grave  
  
And ask for signs for you to come,  
  
Of the lightness daughter/son!  
  
Speak the words of greatest wisdom"  
  
"Harry, mate, there's only one flaw in your poem: which are the words?" Ron asked.  
  
"That's just it: we don't know" Amala said. "It's a riddle. They all are."  
  
"Oh, great!" Ron said. "Maybe we should give up?"  
  
"No" Hermione said. "We need to find a way to find out who is the bearer. If it's Harry, then we need to find it. If it isn't him, then we'll leave this task to the bearer."  
  
And again they started studying the texts.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Sunday night in the Gryffindor 6th year boys' bedroom. Only one person was up, that person being a green eyed bespectacled boy who was looking out the window. What if he, Harry Potter, was the bearer of the Green Flame Torch? All these things happened to him. But he and his friends had studied for almost a month now this issue and there still was nothing they found out new. All classes went as usual, everything seemed to be normal, except for one death -Allebara Ronald, he seemed to remember-. But if he had the chance, would he get the Torch? Would he use it against Voldemort?  
  
"I'd do it" he decided. "I'd bear it"  
  
He looked out the window. Ah, how beautiful it was outside! It was the beginning of February and there still was snow on the school grounds. The moon and the stars were casting their light over the peaceful land, everything shinning under their silvery light.  
  
He looked towards the Forbidden Forest. There was something glowing there! A Death Eater? No, it seemed to be something else. It wasn't human! It was. it was. a stag! A silver stag, just like his Patronus, looking at him, seeming to call him!  
  
Harry stood there, frozen. Who was the stag? It couldn't be a Patronus, he'd have to be casting it! It couldn't be a real creature, no living creature shone that way! It was simply beautiful, but what was it?  
  
And then it stroke him: it was the sign for the Green Flame Torch. He was the bearer. He turned on his heels and went to wake up Ron.  
  
"Ron, I'm the bearer" he mumbled and then proceeded telling him the story, with Ron interrupting him once every three words until he understood what he was talking about.  
  
"Let's go get Hermione!" he said.  
  
"But how do we go in her bedroom?" Harry asked.  
  
"Um. Hedwig! She can wake her up!" Ron proposed.  
  
"Good!" Harry said and took the white owl and they both went to wake the girls up.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Outside, on the castle grounds, in the Forbidden Forest, there was a white stag looking up to the castle.  
  
"Come to me" a kind female voice said and the stag turned its head towards her.  
  
She was beautiful, although she didn't seem to be completely human. A white aura surrounded her and it was obvious that no darkness could ever touch her. In her eyes one could see the stars, in her smile you could see life itself. She was, to say it as short as possible, the purest person to ever be encountered.  
  
The stag went towards her and bowed its head.  
  
"You have done well" she whispered and petted it. "Thank you"  
  
The stag changed its appearance, getting smaller and looking more and more like a light orb in the night.  
  
"My dear angel" she whispered. "Take care"  
  
The orb of light pulsated once and then disappeared, but the woman remained.  
  
"Harry Potter, we will be helping you on your path" she whispered. "And now, where is my betrothed? One of his should know about this young bearer."  
  
She smiled and then started walking in a certain direction, towards the middle of the Forbidden Forest, not lighting any light, but not being afraid. No creature, no human could attack her and she knew it.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
AN: I know, kind of a short, but that's life. So, tell me, did you like it? Did you hate it? Tell me anything! And I could swear these chapters write themselves!  
  
By the way, did I ever mention how I got the idea of writing Amala/Severus? 10 hours in a car, that's how. The fact that I was half-sleeping was even better.  
  
Well, not much left for me to say except for the 'thank you's. Here it goes!  
  
The Red Dragons Order: Who knows about vampires? But I don't think so. And the elves will appear in a time and way I have already thought of, but your idea is also very nice! And thanks again for the wonderful picture with the Green Flame Torch you sent me!!!  
  
Babyjayy: Thank you and here's a new chap!  
  
Naomie: Thank you too!  
  
Deh Vap: *bows* Thank you, I am honored! 


	23. The Black Dog, the Duel and the Couple

Dedication: To the Red Dragons Order, the best writer I've ever met!  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing.  
  
Chapter 23: The Black Dog, the Duel and the Couple  
  
*-Nagini. Where are you, ssssweet?-* Harry asked.  
  
"Here, Massster-*  
  
*-How issss your sssson doing?-*  
  
*-Fine ssssire. Sssshe will do it sssssoon and my sssssson will be ready-*  
  
*-Make ssssure Towerssss isss around-*  
  
*-I will sssssire-*  
  
Harry looked around the dark room. Towers was a pain in the ass. And who was helping him? Who was making sure that every clue he made sure to lead to him would be hidden or destroyed? Or was the man more than he looked to be? Annoying problem. He felt reality was somehow draining away and everything got blurry, only to leave him in a bed in Gryffindor tower. Another dream.  
  
Harry looked around the room. Nothing important here to make him go to Dumbledore. Another plan to destroy Towers, but it seemed the man could take care of himself. He had no idea what caused these dreams to appear more and more often. Well, he'd had had two for the last two weeks. Middle February, it was. And middle-insanity through the school, as usual.  
  
He got up and put some robes on and threw his Invisibility Cloak over himself. A midnight walk would be wonderful. Anyway he wouldn't be able to sleep now. So, what was the deal with Towers? Why was Voldemort so keen on getting rid of him? And why wouldn't he do it himself?  
  
He went through the portrait hole -the Fat Lady didn't bother to ask him what he was doing- and started walking down the corridors. Well, he had felt also a bit of fear in Voldemort, but it was something beyond Towers. Way beyond that man. Gah! He couldn't remember what it was! An old memory, maybe. Yes, it was something like that. But the man was creepy even to Harry. He always seemed to be around when things happened. Who knew what was going on?  
  
That led him to his next problem: what was going on with the Torch? Why weren't other signs appearing to him so that he could follow them? Hermione said that probably saying 'I'd do it' was what had caused the stag to appear. But why didn't other signs appear? Well, they had thought that they would come when the time was right. But when would the time be right?  
  
He just walked around the corridors, thinking when he heard low voices from somewhere:  
  
"But Snape, please. I need to see Harry."  
  
"It can wait until morning, Black"  
  
"I need to tell him something"  
  
"It would raise too much suspicion if you went in his dormitory in the middle of the night, don't you think, Black?"  
  
Harry stopped suddenly. That was Sirius! Sirius had come! And he had something to tell him! He grinned. Well, next morning he'd find out what, no doubt about it!  
  
He was just about to turn on his heels and go back to his room when something crashed into him and he fell on the floor with something on top of him.  
  
"Ow! Gerroff!" He said.  
  
"Who's. Harry?" the unmistakable voice of Sirius Black said.  
  
"Yes. Get off!"  
  
The thing got off and took off an Invisibility Cloak.  
  
"Hi, Harry!"  
  
"10 points from Gryffindor for being out after curfew!" Snape said, coming out from behind the corner.  
  
"Hello Sirius" Harry said, taking off his Cloak. "But, Professor."  
  
"Want a detention Potter?"  
  
"Come on, Snape. He was just."  
  
"Just what, Black?"  
  
"It's ok, Sirius" Harry said. "What are you doing here?"  
  
"Order business and I'm not officially here, so I'm under Cloak."  
  
"Under Cloak?" Snape asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Version of undercover" Sirius replied with a smirk and Snape rolled his eyes. "So, what are you doing?"  
  
"Walking around, thinking"  
  
"That's hard to believe" Snape said.  
  
"Shut up or I'll hex you into oblivion" Sirius threatened.  
  
"As if you could" the Potion Master replied. "So, tell him whatever you had in mind and then we can send him back to his dormitory."  
  
"Missed you, kiddo" Sirius said.  
  
"That was important" Snape said.  
  
"Shut up" Sirius said. "And leave, please."  
  
"Try not to blow the place up" Severus said, after raising an eyebrow. Then, he turned on his heels and left.  
  
"He's in a good mood" Sirius said, looking quite serious about it.  
  
"Good mood?!" Harry asked.  
  
"Yes, he seems like it, doesn't he?" the other man said. "Well, I wanted to tell you something before we ran into each other. There's this Green Flame Torch, you see. It's a very powerful magical object and."  
  
"I know" Harry said. "It's around Hogwarts. I've heard"  
  
"Where did you. Never mind." Sirius said. "Well, it's good that you know. You almost always end up in trouble and I don't want you to go searching for it. Leave it to the bearer."  
  
Harry took a deep breath.  
  
"Sirius. I am the bearer" he said.  
  
For a few seconds, nothing happened. Sirius just stared at him in shock. Then, he managed to close his mouth and asked:  
  
"How do you know?"  
  
"I saw my sign"  
  
"Listen, Harry. It might have seemed like a sign, but maybe it wasn't. I mean, there are many coincidences happening. You shouldn't go after it, Harry, who knows, maybe it was just something somebody did and had nothing to do with you or the Torch"  
  
"Sirius. I saw this great, silver, glowing stag at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. It was looking at me, seeming to call me."  
  
"You're joking." Sirius said in shock and then managed to pull himself together. "But maybe it was a sign for somebody else. You know, maybe it was nothing. It might not have been about the Torch"  
  
"My Patronus is a stag, Sirius. And it appeared just after I said I would bear it if it came to me"  
  
"Why would you say that?!" Sirius asked, shocked.  
  
"As you said, it's usually me who gets in all this trouble"  
  
Sirius just looked at him, a bit unpleased.  
  
"Very well, then. I'll tell you all we know. It seems to be in the Forbidden Forest. There's something in there that some things are guiding. But don't go after it until you get the sign. Alright, Harry?"  
  
"Alright. I have no intention of getting myself killed ether" Harry replied.  
  
"Wait for the time"  
  
"I will. Sirius, why did you come here?"  
  
"Order business"  
  
"What Order business?"  
  
Sirius sent him a small smile.  
  
"Towers is getting himself in a lot of shit lately. We're all doing our best to keep him out of it, but he says that soon it'll all come to the surface and turn against him, so we shouldn't worry anymore, just leave him with his own. Now we're trying to convince him to remain at the castle at all times. He's been out too much lately"  
  
"He's been out?" Harry asked, surprised.  
  
"Yes, he has. Well, it seems he's doing it quite skillfully, doesn't it? He's helping with everything he can. He's going in dangerous missions and manages to do them right. But unfortunately, he's starting to be overwhelmed by the numerous things that point him as an enemy of our side. He hasn't done anything, out of what we know, but we can't say that he's been doing this or that at the certain time when things happen, because then we might get some members of the Order involved and it might come out to the surface who they are."  
  
"Voldemort is really trying to get him" Harry said. "He's planning something right now. Something with a 'she' and a snake."  
  
"How do you know?" Sirius asked.  
  
"I've had a few dreams."  
  
"Dreams?! Harry, you must go to Dumbledore."  
  
"There's nothing he can do to help me" Harry said. "He said it himself. It's nothing important."  
  
"Harry, you must."  
  
"No. Really, Sirius, it's nothing he can do to help me now."  
  
Sirius sighed.  
  
"I want you to be careful."  
  
"I will"  
  
"I should be going now. I've got to see Towers. I'll be leaving tonight"  
  
"Bye, Sirius."  
  
"Bye Harry" the man replied and threw the Cloak back over himself. Harry did just the same and left back to his tower.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Next morning, Harry told Hermione, Ron and Amala about his conversation with Sirius.  
  
"He's right. You shouldn't go in the Forest without the signs."  
  
"Hermione, I know and I won't" Harry said. "I'll wait. Only problem is: for how long?"  
  
Ron nodded.  
  
"Huge problem that one, too. What if the Torch comes too late?"  
  
"I don't think it will" Amala said. "I think it'll choose the perfect time. "  
  
"How can it know? It's a torch!" Ron said.  
  
"No, not just a torch. It's a magical torch, remember?" Amala asked. "Maybe it can tell. Or it has somebody to tell it what to do and when to do it. Maybe that someone will send it when the time is right."  
  
"And how will the person know when the time is right?" Harry asked. "What if the person doesn't know?"  
  
"He or she will know, probably. It was well the last times when it was done, wasn't it?" Amala said. "I trust this. Don't ask me why, but I do."  
  
Harry nodded. She was probably right.  
  
"Do you think it will be easy to get?"  
  
"No" Ron said.  
  
"Maybe" Hermione said.  
  
"Definitely not" Amala said. "But definitely possible. There probably won't be any tests you can't pass. It will be a test made for you and you only."  
  
"Encouraging" Harry mumbled. "Well, shouldn't we go? We have that meeting with Towers now, don't we?"  
  
"Yes" the others answered and gathered their stuff.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"Harry, you go with Draco. Hermione and Ron, you go in the other corner of the room. Neville and Ginny, over there. Mike and Jane, there. Luna and Amala, that spot."  
  
Towers was putting them in different spots. They were supposed to be dueling each other. Harry had noticed how much Draco had changed: he had started to smile, too, instead of only smirk. And he wasn't all that mean. Harry was still wondering what Towers had done to him.  
  
"Good, good. Now, practice your dueling skills. I'll be watching" the Professor said. "Three. two. one. go!"  
  
They all shot random spells at the others and Harry barely managed to get out of the way of Draco's curse.  
  
"I'd advice using a shielding spell first" Towers cried, but didn't stop them.  
  
"Stupefy!" Harry cried and Draco got himself out of the way.  
  
"Tarantalegra!" the other cried and Harry ducked.  
  
"Impedimenta!" Harry cried, in the same time Draco yelled 'Protegus'. He never made it out of the way.  
  
"Well, well, seems that Potty managed to get himself stuck!" Draco said with a grin, walking close to Harry. "It's fun to see you like this."  
  
"Tarantalegra!"  
  
Draco was hit by a beam of light and started dancing.  
  
"What the-? Hey, how dare you?"  
  
"Watch your back, Draco" Towers said, blowing over his wand like a cowboy over his gun.  
  
"But I was dueling with him!" he cried.  
  
"That doesn't count" the Professor replied with a grin.  
  
"Stupefy!" cried Hermione and Towers barely made it out of the way.  
  
"Hey, I'm the Professor!" he cried.  
  
"That doesn't count" she replied with a grin.  
  
"Good point" he commented. "But then. Scourgify! Serpensotia! Expalliarmus! Tarantalegra! Rictusempra! Protegus!"  
  
Mark Evans was hit by the Scourgify spell and had bubbles in his mouth, a snake was hissing at everybody, the Expalliarmus hit the unsuspecting Amala, the Tarantalegra hit Neville who was dancing around and when Hermione had tried to send a 'Rictusempra' back, it hit the shield he had cast. Since Ron was out of the scene -hit by a Petrificus Totalus- and Ginny had fallen under Neville's hexes, Jane was also hit by a Petrificus Totalus and Luna had been defeated by Amala, only Towers and Hermione were still standing.  
  
"Uh oh" Hermione said, seeing the grin on the teacher's face. "Protegus!"  
  
"Protegus! Engorgio!"  
  
Towers pointed the wand to a pillow, making it three times as large as usual.  
  
"Protegus!" he cried again. "Mobiliarbus!"  
  
"Oh, no!" she cried, throwing herself out of the way of the flying huge pillow. "Finite-"  
  
She never finished, being hit by the pillow and falling on the floor.  
  
"Expalliarmus! Accio wand!" Towers said calmly and very short after the girl's wand was in his hand. "Very good", Mrs. Granger, he said. "Very good indeed"  
  
"Thank you. I guess" she replied and he smiled.  
  
"Alright, now. Finite Incantatem, Enervate, Enervate" he said, starting to undo different spells. "All of you are great duelers, I'll give you that. So, all of you are free to go now! Have a good day!"  
  
"We've got to find a way to defeat him, mate" Ron muttered towards Harry as they went out through the door.  
  
"Yes, we should" Jane Chase replied, a devious grin starting to form on her face. Then, with the speed of light, she turned back, pulled out her wand and cried: "Rictusempra!"  
  
Towers, arranging some papers on his desk, was fully hit.  
  
"Sh-hi-hi-t" he managed to say, collapsing on the ground laughing. "Not ha ha fa-ha-ir"  
  
"I know" Jane replied and winked at the Professor who was in hysterics. Actually, the Professor wasn't the only one in hysterics, the students were, too. "You should watch you back"  
  
Towers laughed even harder.  
  
"I think you overdid it" Harry said towards Jane, when he managed to get a hold of himself. "And how come you know of the spell? I thought you didn't learn it until the second year?"  
  
"Oh, we don't" she replied. "But I must have the upper side in duels, now don't I?"  
  
"You should be in our House" Draco said and started laughing again, seeing the Professor who was rolling on the floor with laughter.  
  
"Yes, I should" she replied. "Shall we go? I mean, before he manages to get rid of the spell and takes points from our Houses?"  
  
"Our Houses?" Draco asked, raising an eyebrow. "I think you were the one who did the spell!"  
  
"Yes, I was. But didn't you say just three seconds ago that I should be in your House?"  
  
Towers, who had seemed to calm down a little, burst into laughter again and the students fled.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
On Monday morning, they went to Double Potions -as usual- and Snape, for the first time in his career, didn't sneer or smirk or act like a total pain in the neck. So, he was quite un-Snape-ish.  
  
"I wonder what's wrong with him?" Ron whispered towards Harry.  
  
"Beats me?" Harry replied. "Maybe he didn't sleep well last night? What do you think, Amala?"  
  
"I haven't seen him since Friday" she answered. "Maybe he was gone somewhere?"  
  
Harry suddenly realized he might have been playing Barty Crouch and was about to tell Ron when he remembered he wasn't supposed to tell anybody about it. But, did he ever care about that before? He should tell Hermione, Ron and Amala. Yes, he should. Definitely. Right after the class.  
  
"What the-?" Ron asked. "Harry? Is he sleeping on the teacher's desk or is it just me?"  
  
Harry looked at the desk and widened his eyes. He was sleeping. And, what was worse, the whole class had noticed.  
  
"Professor!" Amala cried and his head jerked up. "Professor, I'm sorry, I did it!"  
  
"Did what?" the sleepy man asked.  
  
"Put the sleeping draught in your pumpkin juice, Professor. I'm deeply sorry. I thought it was. Towers'"  
  
He widened his eyes.  
  
"So! It was you! 50 points from Gryffindor! And I was about to give you all Veritaserum."  
  
Harry stared in shock at the two of them and then noticed the looks of the other people in the class. The Slytherins were happy. Gryffindor had lost 50 points and they wouldn't be tested under Veritaserum! The Gryffindors were less jolly, but didn't say anything. Maybe the fact that they weren't going to be tested under Veritaserum was worth 50 points.  
  
". and a detention tonight at eight"  
  
Snape seemed to open his mouth again to say something, but then yawned.  
  
"Class dismissed. Mrs. Wright, stay behind" he said and they all gathered their stuff and exited.  
  
"Poor chap. I wonder why she tried to put Towers to sleep" Seamus said.  
  
"Huh?" Harry asked, but Hermione answered quickly.  
  
"She told him once that she could get him with a potion and he wouldn't see it and he told her it wasn't possible, so she tried to prove she was right. But it seems that he understood her move and switched his pumpkin juice with Snape's."  
  
"Or maybe he didn't get it and got his juice confused with Snape's" Ron said, getting in the game.  
  
"Well, she'll be punished now for doing that" Dean said and shivered. "Egh. Detention with Snape"  
  
'If you only knew.' Harry thought. 'But you don't'  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"So. Snape is impersonating Barty Crouch." Harry concluded.  
  
"That explains a lot" Amala said. "Quite a lot. Including why he fell asleep during class. Oh, and, by the way, he gave me one hundred points for helping him out and promised to tell me what all this was about tonight. But it doesn't seem to be so important now, does it?"  
  
"Yes, it is important" Hermione said. "Although we know he's a spy, we don't know much more. Maybe you could find out."  
  
"I feel weird. It's as if I were a secret agent or something. I have to squeeze information out of him and he is my boyfriend."  
  
"And your teacher, too" Ron added. "Just to make things easier. So, could you see what's going on?"  
  
"I'll try. But you know, he's not too open"  
  
"No kidding?" Harry asked. "But he's more open with you than us. So, could you please.?"  
  
"As I said, I'll try" she answered. But I don't promise anything"  
  
"It must hard for you" Hermione said.  
  
"It is" she answered.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Harry decided to let the book out of his hand and go to bed. It was late, after all and waiting for Amala wasn't a good idea. And everybody else had slowly gone to bed.  
  
He yawned, got up and started going up the stairs to the boys' dormitories. He was approaching his bedroom when he heard some soft noises. Curiously, he turned round the corner towards the bathroom and saw two people kissing.  
  
"Hermione? Ron?" he asked and the two of them jumped.  
  
"Um, hi, mate!" Ron said, as red as his hair.  
  
"Hi, Harry" Hermione said.  
  
"You're together?" he asked, stunned.  
  
"Well, um. yeah?" Ron asked, obviously expecting a blow.  
  
"Why haven't you told me?" Harry asked. "Since when?"  
  
"L-last year. L-last summer" Ron said. "But, um, we. um."  
  
"Why didn't you tell me?" Harry asked.  
  
"You see, Harry. We were waiting for the right time."  
  
"And couldn't find the right time since last summer?!" Harry nearly cried.  
  
"Shh!" Hermione shushed him. "You'll wake up the whole tower!"  
  
"I don't care!" Harry said, however in a softer tone. "Why didn't you tell me?"  
  
"You had all these problems and." Ron started.  
  
"Well, we didn't feel like waving it in front of you, you know." Hermione completed.  
  
"With the rise of You-Know-Who." Ron said.  
  
"Sirius' death."Harry nearly cried.  
  
Harry nearly cried.  
  
"But. But. You could've told me!" Harry insisted.  
  
"It didn't feel right. 'Hey, Harry, we know you're number one on Voldemort's black list and hey, we're dating', you know?" Hermione said.  
  
"But you could've told me!" Harry insisted. "Why don't tell me anything?!"  
  
"We do! We really do!"  
  
"And when were you going to tell me?!" Harry asked. "At your wedding?"  
  
"No. soon" Hermione said. "Please, Harry! We really didn't want to upset you!"  
  
"I don't care! You still could've. Never mind. Good night!" Harry said and turned his back on them and went to bed. What else did they keep from him? And they were his two best friends! Why hadn't they told him? Why? Yes, true, he hadn't been all that jolly and happy, but still.  
  
And what else was being kept from him? What else didn't he know? Perhaps Sirius was married? Or maybe Voldemort was cooking up a huge plan? Or maybe they'd found the Green Flame Torch? Or maybe. Maybe his whole life was one of those TV shows? Yeah, that'd be great! Nobody ever told him anything! And he was supposed to know more about things than others. wasn't he?  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
On a couch, somewhere in the dungeons, a very unusual couple was having a talk. His arm was protectively wrapped around her and she was leaning onto him. But the subject was quite serious, despite the calmness of the scene.  
  
"You're playing Barty Crouch?!" Amala asked, pretending to be shocked. "Wow! Where is he now?"  
  
"I won't answer that question" Severus said.  
  
"So that's why you were this tired! First, Vold-You-Know-Who, then the Ministry. who else has been calling you?"  
  
"Nobody else, but they were enough to occupy two days and three nights"  
  
"Wow." Amala said. "wow, wow, wow. And now you called me."  
  
"I thought you should know" Severus replied. Well, he did think she should know. He wouldn't like her going through his stuff or constantly asking him why he had been that tired, now would he? Better tell her. And besides, she saved his image. "But the only thing that bothers me is whether your colleagues bought your story or not."  
  
"They must have. Hermione told them I was aiming for Towers since I made a bet with him that I could get him with a potion or something. Hmmm. Maybe you should tell him. If he says I never told him such a thing, this whole thing is blown up."  
  
"But wouldn't I have to tell him then why you did it?" Severus asked.  
  
"But he knows we're. um. together"  
  
That's right! They were together, Severus realized. They were together. If anybody would have told him a year ago it would be like this, he'd have asked him if he had spent too much time with Dumbledore. But, now, the problem a hand.  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Yes, he said he met you when you were under Veritaserum. was he lying?"  
  
"No. It was true. He had met me under Veritaserum. But how do you know he found out?"  
  
"Told me once."  
  
"Just like that?!"  
  
"Well, not just like that."  
  
"Then?" This story was bound to be interesting.  
  
"Me and Draco. Well."  
  
Ok, now what was that? Was she after Draco? But no, she wouldn't do such a thing!. Would she?  
  
"Yes?" Did he really want to know?  
  
"Well, I wanted to jinx him."  
  
Ah! That was it? And why was she like this? Why was she acting as if it was something embarrassing or a secret? Or as if he shouldn't find out?  
  
"Go on" he encouraged her.  
  
"And Towers caught us and he. um. well, he guessed the reason why we were in the situation."  
  
"And the reason was?"  
  
"Um.er.well.actually."  
  
"Amala. Which was the reason?"  
  
"Um. You" she said nearly in a whisper"  
  
"Me?!" Severus said, raising his eyebrows in surprise.  
  
"Yeah. You"  
  
"And what in the world caused you to jinx Draco?"  
  
"He was making fun of you. But I bet that it was only to annoy me. Let's just say it worked."  
  
Had she fought in his defense? This girl was a constant surprise! With a shiver, he realized that the girl had been in Death and saved Sirius. A mystery, that's what she was. But what is he. Should he ask? He never did. But what if she didn't want to talk about it? But what if she did? Well, he should at least try.  
  
"Amala, I wanted to ask you something." Right, now that sounded stupid.  
  
"What?"  
  
"You've been in Death, right?"  
  
She looked at him and smiled.  
  
"Yeah. So, you want to know how it was, huh?"  
  
"Yes" he answered.  
  
"It wasn't as bad as one might think. But I think that it was only the pass way to the real Death. It wasn't any bit like Hell or Heaven, you know?"  
  
"Tell me"  
  
"Well, I had been staring at the veil for quite a while until I actually had the push to go through it. Well, somebody pushed me. It was Towers, although then I didn't know."  
  
"Towers?!" Severus said with surprise.  
  
"Yeah, him. So, I went through the veil. It was this dark place with glowing figures all over. I managed to find Sirius pretty soon and we wanted to go out when this Guardian stopped us from passing back."  
  
"Guardian?"  
  
"Guardian of Death. She was supposed to not let anyone pass back. But then I had this urge to tell her to call Death itself and I did it. At first she didn't want to... Well, she didn't want to at all. But then Death itself came and let us out and fired, if you could say that, her Guardian. Then, to be polite, she asked me whether I wanted the job and I said no. And she went out through the veil with us and Towers was there and they were. joking. and then Towers took me and Sirius to Romania and left Sirius there and then took me back to Hogwarts."  
  
Severus was more and more surprised.  
  
"How did Death look like?"  
  
"She was this very beautiful woman. But she didn't look at all evil, you know what I mean? And she was all dressed in black. But something tells me it was all an act. I thought about it afterwards. She was too. human."  
  
"But why would Death act?"  
  
"I don't know" Amala answered. "I have absolutely no idea."  
  
Severus sighed. Well, that was another thing to think about. Was he never going to have some sleep? Yes, those five or six hours that afternoon had helped, but now he had yet another mystery to solve.  
  
"I should go" Amala said. "Maybe you want to sleep or something?"  
  
"Yes" he answered. "I'd need that"  
  
He leaned towards her and kissed her, then she left. Thank God he was already in his dorm, or he would never find the strength to get to the bed!  
  
He got up, walked to it and managed to change -with great difficulty- and then collapsed on his bed, falling asleep the moment his head touched the pillow.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Author's Note: Here's a new chap and well, I'm sorry it's this late! But I have some school problems -ok, ok, not quite problems, since I chose to do the things myself. To say it shortly, the competitions on different school subjects are coming and that eats quite a lot of my time. So, probably I won't do much writing, since I can't exactly find the time to even wash my hair -but I manage-.  
  
So, did you like my chap? Did you expect Hermione and Ron to be dating? And please, please review! I like to see that people have read what I wrote! I love it! So, even if you have absolutely no idea what to write in the review, write something like an 'I read it' and it'll do! If you desire to do so, flame. Even if you consider it self understood that you're reading, please review.  
  
Next point: Thanks! To whom? To:  
  
Skillz: Thank you!  
  
The Red Dragons Order: Thank you and yes, we might know the glowing lady. So, who's Naia? And I've got everything thought of with elves. And about vampires. I simply don't know. 


	24. A Flea, A Fly And A Flew Part1

Dedication: to the Red Dragons Order. You'll love this chapter!  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing.  
  
Author's Note: *jumping around like a rabbit* Oh, I love this chapter! Just think. the Slytherin Gryffindor match and that's only the beginning! ENJOY!  
  
Chapter 24: A Flea, a Fly and a Flew-Part1  
  
"Well, good luck tomorrow at the Quiddich match!" Towers said jollily when his group finished the special training.  
  
"To whom?!" Draco asked. "There are people here from all the Houses!"  
  
"All of you and give us a good game. Got it?" the Professor asked.  
  
"Yes, sir!" Draco and Harry replied in the same time.  
  
Harry turned his eyes towards the blond Slytherin and raised an eyebrow. Since when did they talk in the same time? Draco just smirked and shook his head. Weird.  
  
"Well, let's go, we'll be late for dinner and we still have to look through those books!" Hermione said.  
  
"Books?!" Draco asked. "What books?!"  
  
"Hermione" Harry mouthed and he chuckled. Ah, yes, 'Hermione' was the perfect reason behind any studying. Although this one was not quite normal. The four had to check -as Ron had asked "Why for the millionth time, Hermione?!"- some details about the Green Flame Torch. She kept saying that if they were careful enough they would see the signs even in books.  
  
They exited the classroom and went to the Great Hall. Somehow, Harry had managed to get past the fact that Hermione and Ron hadn't told him about their relationship. But that didn't mean he felt any less awkward. Because he did feel awkward.  
  
"So, my dad was quite the noble, but my mom gave me the name I have now" Jane Chase told Draco. "It's quite the tradition: give your name to the kid, even if you are the mother and he or she should have the father's name"  
  
"Really?" Draco asked, curiously. "And since when has this tradition been in your family?"  
  
"God knows. Maybe since the five hundreds?" she replied. "So, we Chases go way back. It's said it all started when one of my ancestors went to find one of the last wise dragons and the dragon led him through all the wonderful places of the world and showed him all the rich there was. And since my ancestor always had to chase after the dragon who told him to keep up if he wanted to know all there is to know, my ancestor was called 'Chase'. King Chase or Rex Chase, that was him! And then he returned to his home and had a family and his wife gave birth to a girl. When she was still young, she went to find the dragon and chased him all around the world to make him tell her the secrets of life. And she too was called Chase. Sonia Chase, that was her name. And then she too had children and grandchildren and heirs of all types who again went to find the dragon and then the White Stag and so our names stuck with us! And we have the tradition of naming our children after us because all of us have always chased after something. Even my mom! She chased after an elf! We keep our name proudly on a silver platter, Malfoy!"  
  
Draco laughed.  
  
"At least you're chasers, but we were named for betraying the royal court in France!" he said and Jane laughed. "But who knows what Potter and Weasley were named after?!"  
  
"Shut up, Malfoy!" Ron said, although playfully. "Thank God we finally made it here, or I'd be driven mad by your babbling"  
  
"Shut up, Weasel King!" Draco said, mock-hurt, entering the Great Hall.  
  
"Shut up, both of you" Harry interfered.  
  
"Shut up, Potty!" Draco replied.  
  
'You know, if you'd just shut up." Hermione started saying but was interrupted by Mark Evans' laugh. "Oh, well."  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
March, the beginning of spring. And not only that, but the time of the year when Quiddich matches were held and today, on this wonderful day, there was one special match everybody wanted to see.  
  
"Here we are, ladies and gentlemen! The Gryffindor Slytherin Quiddich match!" Orla Quirky, the commentator cried out. "And what a wonderful game it's going to be! Here come the Slytherins!"  
  
She introduced all of them as they circled the pitch in their green robes. Then, she introduced the Gryffindors. Hermione cheered them all as they went around the pitch. Somehow, she had ended up near the teachers, along with Amala and both of them were cheering their heads off, ignorant to Snape's glares and Towers' amused look, and even McGonagall's shock to see two of her best students jumping up and down like maniacs.  
  
"May the best team win!" Towers cheered. "Kick their asses, Gryffindor!"  
  
"Are you saying that the Gryffindor team is better?" Snape asked with a glare.  
  
"Yep" the other replied. "GO GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
"No, they're not" Snape said.  
  
"Come on, Malfoy's good, but the Gryffindors have seven good players!" Towers said.  
  
"But not better than my team"  
  
"Come on, Sev, you know that Gryffindor's better." Towers said and suddenly had to jump out of the way of a hex.  
  
"I said stop calling me Sev!" Snape said, wand in his hand.  
  
"Aw, but why?" the Defence Professor asked.  
  
"Please, calm down" McGonagall said, desperately.  
  
"I'm calm!" Towers said. "It's Batman who has an attitude problem"  
  
"What did you call me?" Snape asked, fuming.  
  
"Batman. You know the Muggle TV series, don't you?" the other asked.  
  
"Calm down!" McGonagall cried, attracting the attention of the whole public around. She coughed embarrassedly. "Ehm, please"  
  
Amala and Hermione, who had only noticed Towers jump around like a maniac shook their heads and went back to the game.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Harry was scouting around for the Snitch which was nowhere to be seen. How fun was that? And Draco also had the same problem. They were zooming around like airplanes, but to no avail. And it was already like this for half an hour! Harry stopped in midair and Draco came next to him.  
  
"Did Hooch even let go of the snitch?" the blond asked. "I haven't seen it since the very beginning"  
  
"Me neither" Harry answered. "That would be funny. No snitch and us flying around."  
  
"Hilarious. But, well, at least I'm flying around like a dragon" Draco said.  
  
"What the-?" Harry asked.  
  
"My name. Draco. Means Dragon. Earth to the full of hair pot maker" the blonde replied in a -duh- tone.  
  
"Very what?!" Harry asked, confused. "I'm not full of hair and."  
  
"Yep. Gryffindors are idiots. Your name. Harry Potter. Hairy potter. Got it?"  
  
"Ah" was all Harry could say.  
  
He scouted all over the field. This would be a loooong game. Veeeery long. And with Draco by his side, it was even 'better'.  
  
"30-0 to Gryffindor!" Orla cried. "And the snitch nowhere in sight. But wait! What's that?"  
  
Harry looked all over the pitch for the golden ball and Draco, but the blond -only 5 meters away- didn't seem to have found anything. Harry took a peak at the chasers. Yep, it was them Orla was talking about them. But, he had an idea. He pretended to see the snitch and dropped down in the Wronsky feint. Draco of course followed, but he didn't fall for the trick.  
  
"Nice try, Harry" Orla said. "Maybe next time? So, back to the Chasers. Wow! What a great block by Ronald Weasley!"  
  
Indeed, Ron had done one of the greatest blocks. He smiled widely towards Harry and returned to his position in front of the hoop in the middle.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Ok, this was starting to become annoying! Where was the snitch?! Not that Harry had anything against flying on a broomstick, but for two hours it was a bit too much! And Draco seemed to be falling asleep on the broomstick.  
  
And then, he saw it! Gold and winged, the tiny snitch was just below him.  
  
"Is that the SNITCH?!" Orla cried.  
  
'Traitor' Harry thought, racing down to it.  
  
"Not this time, Potter!" Draco cried, right behind him.  
  
"And what a race! What a race!!! Come on! Come on! Get it! NOW!"  
  
Harry nearly grabbed it when a Bludger came his way and he had to duck in front of it. Draco followed his lead and managed to get away from the black ball, but in the meantime, the tiny ball was gone.  
  
"NOOO! Who sent that Bludger? Why, it was that traitor of a Slytherin."  
  
Harry looked around for the snitch, and Draco rose up in the air. Where did it go? Aha!  
  
The ball seemed to call him from the middle of the pitch and Draco saw it in nearly the same second. Both of them raced to it and it starting zooming across the field. But this time, this time he'd get it!  
  
"What a speed!" Orla cried. "Go seekers! Chase after the snitch! Get it! Get it!"  
  
Now Harry and Draco raced shoulder by shoulder, the snitch two meters in front of them. one and a half. one. half a meter. Harry could nearly catch it. darn! It went faster again! No matter. Bludger from the left. back to half a meter. No! Draco must not catch up! He shot a foot towards the Slytherin and then went faster after the tiny ball. Nearly there. Nearly there. Yes! HE CAUGHT IT!  
  
"HARRY POTTER HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH!" Orla cried.  
  
Harry put a brake on quickly, seeing the approaching audience, but something collapsed in him and both he and the thing went flying into the audience.  
  
"Woops!" Harry cried as he fell off his broom in the arms of Hermione. The thing that had crashed into him, also known as Draco Malfoy, hadn't been so lucky.  
  
"Malfoy, get off me or I'll give you a detention to remember!" the man cried.  
  
"Yes, Professor" Draco replied. "I have bad brakes, sir"  
  
"Come on, Batman, you wouldn't give a detention to your own House, now would you?" Towers asked, approaching Snape with a grin on his face. "Wonderful match! Great catch Harry! But Draco, if you wanted revenge, you should have made sure Harry collided with Severus, not you"  
  
Harry laughed as Ron approached.  
  
"Harry, that would be me dating Hermione, not you" he said with a grin.  
  
"Sorry" Harry replied grinning.  
  
"No problem" she replied. "But you should go back to your team! They're waiting for you"  
  
Harry looked at the people down, pointing at the place where they had crashed and laughing. Yeah, that was his team. He went down the stairs, carrying his broomstick, Draco behind him, looking very displeased.  
  
When he got down, his team jumped at him to congratulate him. What a wonderful feeling it was! He'd won! He'd won!  
  
As he jumped up and down, he started hearing concerned voices.  
  
'What's that?" he heard somebody ask and looked towards where everybody was pointing. A. thing was coming towards them. As it came closer and closer, it separated into other things.  
  
"People! On broomsticks!" Hermione cried and he realized that was indeed it. As they came closer and closer, he recognized Kingsley and Nymphadora.  
  
"Aurors" he muttered and then turned to Ron. "They're Aurors!"  
  
"By gum! You're right!" the other replied. "I wonder what they want"  
  
Everybody made way for the Aurors to land, which they did. They dismounted and the leader of the group said, loud and clear over the silence that now ruled over the pitch:  
  
"Jack Towers, surrender in the name of the Ministry of Magic!"  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Author's Note: Mwahahahaha! I've been waiting to do this ever since I've started this story! And this is only the first part of the chap and the next one will come soon. I just had to put a cliffhanger!  
  
Thanks to: Skillz, babyjayy.  
  
The Red Dragons Order: No, she's not Rowena. That woman's dead and buried, just like the other Founders. But she was mentioned once. But never appeared around.  
  
Other chapters: missknowitall: Yes, well, he didn't go in there in a complete unsafe mode, did he? He was with a teacher and completely safe, so I didn't count that. Besides, I forgot about the part.  
  
Liddrummergirl: Thanks.  
  
Harryp/charmedfreak: Thanks! Well, by the time you get here, you'll already know who Amala is, so. 


	25. A Flea, A Fly And A Flew Part2

Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, I were J.K. Rowling, which I'm not. And if I owned the songs or the tongue twister, I'd also be someone else. Unfortunately, I forgot who sings the songs, sooooo... No credit to them. Sorry.  
  
Dedication : To the Red Dragons Order. Hope you enjoy this, Red!  
  
Chapter 24- A Flea, a Fly and a Flew –Part 2  
  
"Jack Towers, surrender in the name of the Ministry of Magic!" said one of the Aurors and from somewhere behind him, Harry heard Towers' voice.  
  
"This is so cliché!" he mumbled and moved in the middle of the circle of students. "What is this all about?"  
  
"Jack Towers, in the name of the Ministry of Magic, I, the head Auror..."  
  
"Get over with it, will you?" said Towers, raising an eyebrow. "I know who you are, but your reason for coming here and asking me to surrender is, however, still a mystery."  
  
"You are arrested for the murder of Monica Kane and Allebara Ronald and for using the Cruciatus curse on Mark Evergreen" the Auror said, a bit thrown off course. People were usually impressed with his status.  
  
"I have done none of those, my dear Aurors", Towers said and, after considering it for a second, added calmly "I have done others, but this is not my work." A smile appeared on his face and Harry had the feeling that Towers was not going to surrender for the world. A dark aura seemed to appear around him and Harry shivered. But nobody else seemed to notice this as the man smiled to the Aurors. Tonks was quiet and looking at him with curiosity, maybe a bit of fear. She was in the Order with him! She knew what he could do.  
  
"What have you done?" the Auror asked, looking a bit taken aback by this sudden confession.  
  
"That is not your business right now, is it?!" Towers answered, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"These are the charges and you shall go with us to Azkaban now, whether you want to or not" the Auror said, deciding that he shouldn't ask him any more about the other things then and there. Maybe in Azkaban, though, with the man tied up and without a wand.  
  
"I seriously doubt that" said the Professor and his smile got a bit more intense. His hand shot towards the wand and in the next second a few stupefying spells shot towards him. However, the spell used by Towers wasn't offensive, as they had expected.  
  
"Protegus!" he cried and the spells bounced off the shield and towards the Aurors and students. A few students got stupefied, not being fast enough to jump out of the way or draw their wands. They were woken up by the ones around them. Towers grinned deviously, shooting only a glance at the 'casualties'.  
  
"Give up, Towers, you can't fight us all, no human being can!!!" one of the Aurors cried.  
  
The man in front of them started to laugh, making them stare back in surprise.  
  
"You're right, no human being can!!!" he answered and pocketed his wand.  
  
"Finally, one smart move from you, Towers!" said their leader, obviously relieved. "So, you give up and come nicely with us to Azkaban, right? And we'll even give you a trial!"  
  
"How very kind of you!" sneered Towers. "But I have better business to take care of than escaping from that prison. No, I'm not coming with you."  
  
Everybody around stared in surprise. But the man pocketed his wand, didn't he??? How come he didn't give up and yet didn't fight?  
  
"Come now, make it easy for yourself!" said Kingsley and tried to smile.  
  
"Well, as tempting as that might sound like, I'd rather not." He sneered again.  
  
"What can you do? Consider your chances!" tried one of them to convince him. Tonks was just looking at him, seeming a bit amused.  
  
"Already did that, thanks for the idea. Seeing you, I believe they're quite good. I believe I can fly, I believe I can touch the sky" he sang cheerfully, not a care in the world. "I think about it every night and day, spread my wings and fly away. I believe I can fly!"  
  
The Aurors stared at him. He was in danger and he was singing! Out of all the things he just had to sing, didn't he? He was crazy, he didn't have to go to Azkaban, he had to go to St. Mungo's! Meanwhile, he changed his song, seeming to have forgotten the words in his first one.  
  
"Oh, yes, I am the Great Pretender! Pretending that I'm doing well... Oh, yes, I am the Great Pretender!"  
  
"This is your last song in freedom, Towers" said the leader of the Aurors, starring at the man in front of him who was happily singing. This was not the average murderer or dark wizard they caught.  
  
"Wanna bet?!" he asked and stopped his last song and, grinning, started singing a new one. "I'll soon be gone now, forever not yours! It won't be long now, forever not yours!"  
  
Even a baby could have seen that Towers was mocking them and enjoying it badly. Surprisingly, so did the Aurors. Their leader looked furious and ready to strike.  
  
"Towers, I warn you!!!" he cried, but the man grinned and stopped his singing.  
  
"You warn me that what?! You're gonna attack me?! Save me from drowning in the sea, beat me up on the beach, what a lovely holiday, there's nothing funny left to say!"  
  
If the situation hadn't been so tragic, Harry might have considered it extremely funny. Towers was definitely enjoying himself mocking his attackers who didn't want to attack a person without a wand. That and they didn't want to attack a man who had helped them, or seemed to had helped them by fighting on their side a few times, proving that he was very, very powerful and always ready to strike and who seemed to be... mentally damaged. Especially the last one. Especially because although he seemed –seemed? No, was- crazy, they knew that he wasn't the right person to fight with. Unless you had a death wish. And he did seem perfect for the mental ward at St. Mungo's.  
  
"...Everything we've ever stole has been at last return at home and no more dragons left to slay...Pam-pa-pampa-ram-ram-pa-pam. Every mistake I've ever made has been rehashed and then replayed as I got lost along the way..."  
  
"Shut up!!!" the leader of the Aurors yelled, pissed off.  
  
"Well, well, someone is losing his temper. You really shouldn't, it makes you lose in duels because of attacking at wrong moments." Towers said, reminding everybody around of the way he thought his classes. "But you should know that even though I'll run away now, I'll always be there for the ones that need me." He stopped for a second. "That was Dumbledore-ish. Anyway, maybe I should give you the name of a person through whom you may contact me. In case you come to your senses."  
  
The Aurors stared at him. A contact? When he was supposed to hide?! That is, if he got away?! Maybe they should send him to St. Mungo's. No, they should definitely send him to St. Mungo's.  
  
"Her name is Sania Demonheart" He said. "And now I'll run away, if you don't mind."  
  
"You can't run away!" Kingsley said.  
  
'How did the tongue twister go?' Towers asked himself, while grinning madly at the Aurors. 'Ah, right! A flee, a fly and a flew/ were in prison so what could they do? Got it!' After thinking for not even two seconds, he replied, mockingly:  
  
"Then... Me, a guy and you/Were right here so what could we do?!" He started while grinning. "Said me let me fly/Above your heads in the sky/So I'll flee out of here in a sec."  
  
Everybody stared at him as he finished his version of the tongue twister. A devious grin was on his face and he looked like a mad, dark, powerful wizard. Double the 'mad' part. No, multiply it by ten.  
  
"You can't fly out of here, Towers!" the leader of the Aurors said "There's no way."  
  
"Then I'll flee."  
  
"You can't flee Towers. There's no way you can get past 10 Aurors."  
  
"Oh, but I will in three..." the wizard said, raising three fingers.  
  
"You can't! We won't let you!" the Auror said, looking desperate at Towers who seemed to have gained control of the situation somehow.  
  
"Oh, I'm so scared! Two..." he said mockingly.  
  
"You can't get past us!"  
  
"Wanna bet? Let's make it... ten Galleons! I'll be coming back for my money. One..."  
  
"Stupefy him!!!" Kingsley cried, taking control. He didn't like doing this, but he had to if they wanted to catch Towers. Or if they wanted to act as if they wanted to catch Towers. And he really could find no other way to prove his loyalty to the Ministry.  
  
But as ten stupefying spells shot towards him, Towers' body started morphing, leaving the Aurors speechless and shocked as the spells bounced off him.  
  
His eyes got larger and red, fiery, his face got long and black, his arms and legs were now powerful and black in color, his body got long, snake- like and two beautiful wings sprout on his back. In other words, he became an elegant, lizard-like, 10 meter long dragon.  
  
Its body was black with silver on the tips of his wings and some stripes of the same color on its tail and body.  
  
Everybody stared at him as he opened his mouth and shot some fire into the air, as a warning. Then, the Aurors started shooting random spells at it. They weren't Aurors for nothing! Even though there was this huge, black, powerful, dragon that used to be Towers and looked as if it could kill them all if it wanted to, they could not fall into awe!  
  
The dragon seemed to laugh as the spells bounced off it or got absorbed in it, and then it stretched its wings, taking no notice in anything else that happened. Then it shot up at a huge speed, circling over their heads a few seconds and then flew over the Forbidden Forest, disappearing from sight in less then a minute.  
  
From somewhere, everybody could hear a song getting stronger. Maybe it was a spell someone had cast. It must have been the 'veni cantus'.  
  
"It's a new world, it's a new start, it's a life, it's a beat of young heart. It's a new day, it's a new plan. I've been waiting for you... HERE I AM!"  
  
"Wandless magic" Harry could hear Snape mutter behind him. "I should've known"  
  
And so, the sun shone merrily above the awestricken students, professors and Aurors, no more dragons or Towers, a pleasant song above them all. All in all, it would have been a happy scene had not the event happened.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"God help me if he could've escaped any weirder" a wonderful, human, yet not human-like woman said to a tall, powerful man. "He is a curious one"  
  
"So much like me. Ah, I love the songs he sang!"  
  
"Is that why you have chosen him?"  
  
"I chose him because he is so much like me" the man answered and smiled at her. "How could I choose ones that are not like me?"  
  
"But what do we do about our young Bearer of the Torch?"  
  
"Help him on his path."  
  
"Then help him on his path we will"  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Author's Note: I LOVE THIS CHAPTER! *cough* Em, sorry. Got a bit carried away. So, pleeeease review and tell me what you think! P.S., I wanted to put the song 'Hit the Road Jack' by Ray Charles here, but the overall atmosphere of the song didn't fit. But I had to mention it!  
  
Thanks to:  
  
Babyjayy: Thank you and... is this fast enough?  
  
Skillz: *turns red* Thank you! And I'm glad you like Snape.  
  
The Red Dragons Order: Actually, the fact that Jane mentioned that there White Stag was a coincidence. Ah, well... Seems I have to mend things together. And Harry and Draco... I definitely needed a devious Slytherin to think of the plans. And when I started thinking he should be tall and blond and with a great success at women, I started laughing. Sounded a lot like a character we all know... So, to cut this short, thank you!  
  
Violet: *turns very, very red* Thank you! Thanks, thanks, thanks! And here's the new chap!  
  
Other chapters:  
  
Harryp/charmedfreak: Well, by the time you get here, there will be completely different problems, so anything I say would already be out of date. But thanks! 


	26. After The Flight

Disclaimer: I own as much as the next Harry Potter fanfic writer.  
  
Dedication: to the Red Dragons Order.  
  
Chapter 25: After The Flight  
  
Albus Dumbledore couldn't help but smile. Ah, for how long had he known Jack Towers was hardly caught! And voila! He had escaped in a truly beautiful way.  
  
Severus Snape could slap himself. He should have known the weird man –who insisted upon calling him Sev or Batman- would escape a bunch of Aurors in a truly power-proving way. The man reminded him of someone... But he couldn't remember... who? Who was the man Towers resembled? Argh! He felt his mind foggy, as if something interfered with his memories. But he had never met Towers before. He was sure of that. But what resemblance to... to... Dumbledore when he was younger? No, it wasn't Dumbledore. Was it?  
  
Tonks nearly grinned when she saw the beautiful dragon flying above their heads. She knew he'd make it! Yes, yes she did! Good old Jack, flying out of there Of course, he'd have some problems by being an Animagus, but who cared?!  
  
Generally, everybody was amazed, staring into space. It was only when the song Towers had put for them ended when they all started moving and talking. First it was a murmur but it very quickly became a racket.  
  
"Come! Defence class!" Hermione cried over the racket towards Harry, Ron, Amala, Ginny and Luna.  
  
They all rushed to the silent castle and entered it. Harry noticed that they weren't the only ones who had heard Hermione's cry, but Draco, Neville, Mark Evans and Jane Chase had come with them, too.  
  
"This is weird. Very weird" Hermione said, going quickly to the class.  
  
"Yeah, tell me about it?" Ron said. "An Animagus is something, but a dragon!"  
  
"That wasn't just a dragon, Ron" she said. "That was one of the most powerful dragons in existence. Ever. Don't you see? Becoming a magical creature is damned difficult, but becoming a dragon is nearly impossible. Maybe Dumbledore or Voldemort would do it. But that... that was an Ancient Sautaus Dragon."  
  
"A what?!" Harry and Ron asked together.  
  
"Ancient Sautaus Dragon" she answered. "I read about it. It was one of the talking dragons. I think they're extinct now, but still. I think maybe Dumbledore would be able to become one, but not even that's for certain!"  
  
"That means..." Ron started.  
  
"Towers is more powerful than Dumbledore" Jane Chase completed. "I suspected... But..."  
  
"I don't know" Hermione said. "And it's hard to become an extinct animal, too"  
  
"What if Towers isn't an Animagus?" Jane asked.  
  
"What do you mean? You've seen him transform!" Neville commented.  
  
"I think I know what you mean" Luna said.  
  
"Me too. But go on" Draco said.  
  
"What if Towers is a... Homomagus?" Jane asked.  
  
"A what?!" Harry asked and Ron looked thoughtful.  
  
"I think I've heard of them, but I can't remember..."  
  
"It means that Towers isn't human" Draco said.  
  
"He's a dragon. And can morph into a human being" Luna said.  
  
"The reverse of an Animagus?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Yes. The exact reverse. The Animagus is a human that can morph into an animal and a Homomagus is an animal that can morph into a human. And talking dragons were known to do that" Draco said.  
  
"So, Towers is an Ancient Dragon" Mark said.  
  
"Maybe" Hermione said. "But we shouldn't make any assumptions. Many of the assumptions we had made over the years turned out to be false."  
  
"Hermione. Stop" Amala said and the girl stopped suddenly from her march.  
  
"Yes?" she asked.  
  
"I have a feeling" Amala said.  
  
"You sick?" Draco asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"No. Not that kind of a feeling" Amala said. "Why did you come with us, Draco?"  
  
"Because I heard Granger and..."  
  
"Neville?"  
  
"Same reason"  
  
"Mark? Jane?"  
  
"Us too" they answered.  
  
"What's your point?" Draco asked.  
  
"You weren't close enough to hear. Not in that racket. But you heard. And you came" Amala said. "I cannot explain it, but I feel it. Hermione, let's go to our room."  
  
"What? You're going to your dorm now?" Draco asked, but Hermione took no notice.  
  
"Are you sure, Amala?"  
  
"Trust me" the girl answered. "Please"  
  
"Very well. This way, everybody" Hermione said and started leading them to the room they had found. Their special room.  
  
"This isn't the way to Gryffindor tower" Draco said.  
  
"We know. We're not going to Gryffindor tower. We're going to a special room" Amala said.  
  
"Are you crazy?" Ron and Harry asked. "We can't take them there!"  
  
"Yes, we can and we will" Hermione said. "Plus, there's one thing that bothers me. All the other Ancient Dragons have name that symbolize their status. Like Ancient Warrior Dragon or Ancient Wise Dragon. But I never figured out what 'Sautaus' meant."  
  
"Maybe it's a region?" Ron asked.  
  
"No, at the time Ancient Dragons lived, they lived all over the world. They weren't bound to a spot" Hermione explained. "And as I said, they could speak. They called themselves 'Warrior' or 'Wise' or 'Mountain' Dragons. Only one specie did not have a name that was translated. Maybe it was the ancient dragon language with at least one word they could not translate into human languages"  
  
"When was this, Granger?" Draco asked. "I can't remember the time."  
  
"Don't know exactly until when, I think they were great even before the humans rose, since some of the first documents speak of them. Most such documents were destroyed or gathered by wizards, so Muggles wouldn't know about the dragons, but even in Ancient Egypt or in Sumer they knew about them. They must have disappeared sometime in the Dark Ages."  
  
"So, theoretically, they're extinct" Draco said.  
  
"Well, yes. But practically, we might be up for a surprise"  
  
They made it to the pre-room and entered.  
  
"Wow!" Draco and the others said when they saw the beautiful white room, decorated with gold.  
  
"Light warriors!" Amala said and the wall opened, letting the teens inside 'the room'.  
  
"Holly shit" Draco said.  
  
"How can you keep this a secret?!" Jane asked.  
  
"Let's check for 'Sautaus' Hermione" Amala said, picking up a book from the library. "Maybe we'll find something"  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Dumbledore had managed to get the students in their common rooms and the teachers in the teachers' room. And the Aurors had come with him to the room, all amazed and angered. All but three. Kingsley, Tonks and a young man, called Mike Arrow.  
  
"He is an unregistered Animagus!" the Auror leader, Paul Graves cried. "I don't think a white wizard would be one!"  
  
"James Potter was an unregistered Animagus, sir" Mike Arrow said. "I highly doubt he was a dark wizard."  
  
"He was an exception, Arrow" Graves said. "Remember, Black was an unregistered Animagus, too"  
  
"Yes, well, he proved to be a good guy, didn't he?" Mike asked innocently.  
  
"And who said it? Well?"  
  
"Um... Towers. And Remus Lupin. And Dumbledore"  
  
"They were brainwashed by Towers!"  
  
"Actually, I don't think I was" Dumbledore said. "And I'm still in the room, gentlemen."  
  
"He was quite the dragon, Towers" Tonks said admiringly. "But wasn't it difficult to become a dragon?"  
  
"Yes it was. And I am afraid to say that Towers is more powerful than even I" the Headmaster said. "Because of the one he always spoke about"  
  
"What?!" Graves asked. "Who did the idiot always speak of?"  
  
"He is not an idiot, Paul" Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling. "An idiot could hardly become an Animagus, and a dragon nevertheless!"  
  
"Who made him powerful?!" Graves asked. "I'll rip the limbs off the idiot who did it!'  
  
"His Master did" Dumbledore said. "And it would be terribly difficult to rip his limbs off. For one, nobody saw him except a few selected people and the man can very easily hide his tracks. He uses wandless magic, so you can't trace him. He can move from one place to another quicker than light and without even the pop of Apparating. I hardly doubt that you could rip his limbs off"  
  
"What's the name of the man?" Graves asked.  
  
"I'm afraid that I cannot tell you that, Paul" Dumbledore said. "Names are powerful things."  
  
"Nonsense!" Graves said. "Now, Dumbledore, you must tell me his name"  
  
"No. Besides, it would not be of much help" the Headmaster explained. "But you can stop searching for Towers. There is no chance he will fall into your hands now. His Master cares too much for him to let something like that happen."  
  
"This is bullshit!" Graves said.  
  
"Watch your language" Kingsley said with a look. "It is not polite to..."  
  
"I damn well know what is polite and what isn't!" the head Auror cried, making all the others ask themselves not only how he ended up as their leader but also how he had passed the tests for Auror training.  
  
"Now, now, Paul, calm down!" Tonks said cheerfully. She still hadn't got over seeing the dragon. "So, getting him is out of the question. What do we do now?"  
  
"It is not out of the question!" Graves said.  
  
"I'd say we go back to the Ministry and that's that" Kingsley proposed.  
  
"We are not going back to the Ministry!"  
  
"I think it's a good idea" Tonks accepted.  
  
"It is not!"  
  
"So, everybody to the Quiddich pitch, we should get our brooms" Kingsley said and the others nodded.  
  
"We are staying right here!"  
  
But the other Aurors were just waving Dumbledore goodbye and getting out of the teachers' room.  
  
"DO YOU EVEN HEAR ME?!" Graves cried at his maximum volume.  
  
"Well, we'll see you later, Albus" Kingsley said. "If you hear anything of our escapee, tell us"  
  
"KINGSLEY SHAKELBOLT!"  
  
"Of course"  
  
"Goodbye, Albus"  
  
"Goodbye!"  
  
"COME BACK!"  
  
When he found himself in a room full of teachers and no Aurors, Graves shrugged. Everybody seemed to be studiously ignoring him –which they were, by the way-. He exited the room, leaving the teachers alone.  
  
"Finally!" Snape said. "I thought he'd never leave!"  
  
"You and me both" Professor Vector, the Arithmancy teacher said.  
  
"Now, now, children, play nice" Dumbledore said, the twinkle in his eyes working overtime."  
  
"We are playing nice, Albus" Snape muttered and McGonagall stifled a chuckle.  
  
"Wha' kind o' dragon was tha'?" Hagrid asked. "I've never seen such a beast!"  
  
"I haven't either" Dumbledore answered. "Only in one very old book, I think it's still in the library and I'm quite sure Mrs. Granger read it. That was one of the Ancient Dragons, Hagrid."  
  
"Ancient Dragons!" the half-giant said. "Why, I never thought ter see one in me life!"  
  
"Indeed, they are –or at least I thought they were- extinct. But it seems that Towers managed to become one."  
  
"But how, Albus?" Minerva questioned. "How can one man become an Ancient Dragon?"  
  
"As I said, he is more powerful than even I. In some way, although otherwise he is weaker."  
  
"What do you mean, Albus?" Snape asked. "How can he be and yet not be more powerful than you?"  
  
"His Master. He has given him the power. He even admitted, once" Dumbledore answered and looked everybody in the staff room in the eye. "There are forces in this world that are far greater than ours. And they are fighting in their own ways, hidden from us"  
  
"How can they hide from us? Wouldn't we discover them?" Vector asked.  
  
"They hide in the same way as we do from Muggles" Dumbledore answered. "But they must be more careful. And maybe they are even fewer than us, at least on Earth they are. I have no knowledge of the full extent of their power."  
  
"So, we're not alone in the Universe" Sprout said.  
  
"No, we are not. We might think we know something, but I don't think we know too much. You see, Towers' Master is one of these powerful beings. Very powerful out of what the ex-Professor told me."  
  
"Then why wouldn't he help us?" Snape asked. "He could end this war and we'd all..."  
  
"No, Severus" Dumbledore said. "He is kept from interfering by ones even greater than him. Because there is something beyond even the powerful Master of Towers. The world is built on the concept of spheres, sphere in sphere in sphere with the Muggles most far away from the center, out of what I know."  
  
"It's starting to scare me" Sprout admitted.  
  
"But we needn't worry" Dumbledore said. "As we must not interfere with Muggles' lives, they will not interfere with ours. The main idea is that Towers' Master will not help us, at least not directly."  
  
"But how come he can help Towers?" Flitwick asked.  
  
"He has a certain power over his servants, or children. Every Master does. See, even Voldemort" –half the room flinched-"has power over his servants, although he is not the gentle parent white Masters are. He is a Dark wizard and therefore will use his power in a dark way. But think about the children you teach. You are, in some way, like Masters to them and you use your power over them to guide them well. Of course, it is a weak example, but it still is one"  
  
The room looked at Dumbledore, who decided to finally sit down.  
  
"But now back to our own problems. I would like it if none of you would try to catch or hurt Towers if he decides to come back. I know him well enough to understand he will be of no harm and to know that he has not done anything to those people."  
  
"But what about the 'other things' he mentioned?" Sprout asked. "He said he had done none of the things he was accused with, but that he had done others."  
  
"I don't think we should worry about those" Dumbledore said. "I think we should worry about Fudge going against us or doing something not very intelligent. He has mistaken friend and foe before and I think he might do it again."  
  
The others in the room nodded. What times they were given to live in!  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"I'm bloody tired!" Draco complained. "Let's rest a bit, shall we? These books look so few and turn out to be so many!"  
  
"It must be magic" Hermione said. "They are definitely fewer when you see them on shelves. Alright, we'll take a break"  
  
They were, of course, in the secret room and they were all tired. Dozens of books were lying open everywhere and Ron was napping on an armchair. It was already night and they had been through nearly one hundred books. That might have not seemed too much, but since most of them were as big as a bible in a church, it had been a long work. Plus, there was always the hope the answer to 'what was a 'Sautaus'' would be on the next page. And they had stumbled across very interesting texts about pixies, Hogwarts, ancient magic, elves, vampires and centaurs –and many others- that they eagerly read. Who knew books would be that interesting! –well, Hermione, but she didn't count-.  
  
Amala sighed and crashed on an armchair and Hermione took out a last book for checking. But when she took it out, another book fell out and crashed open on the floor, face down.  
  
"Oh, no, I hope it's not ruined" Hermione said, picking it up. "Hey, guess what, it's the book we first found when we came in"  
  
"Really?" Ron asked, not very interested.  
  
"Yeah, and look, it's empty"  
  
"What book?" Draco asked.  
  
"When we came in, this book was here, on a shelf, and Hermione picked it up and saw it was nearly empty... It also told us how to get back here" Harry said. "Read something in it, Hermione"  
  
She smiled and opened it in the middle.  
  
"No, this time it's really empty" she said. "The text used to be here" She flipped a few pages and when she made it near the beginning, she almost dropped the book. "It's not empty..."  
  
They all gathered around the book and Hermione read loudly from it.  
  
"When the dragon flies, you guide your steps towards where it left and let it be your guide! Let the Seer See and let the Bearer Search. Help yourselves and forget not your purpose. You shall meet friend or maybe foe, but do not despair, you are helped on thou way. And if thou art wondering what dragon guides your steps, it is an Ancient one, one close to the Heart of Light, for that is what its name means. Go, all of you, brave and cunning and witty! Be all of you loyal to your goal!"  
  
"Weird book" Draco said with a small movement of his head.  
  
"If I had seen it yesterday, I would have laughed" Amala said. "But I think that right now, I feel a strange urge to go in the Forbidden Forest"  
  
"You know, I think you're right" Hermione said. "The dragon flew over the Forest. And the book says 'follow the dragon'."  
  
"Are you out of your minds?!" Draco asked. "Forbidden Forest?!"  
  
"Did we mention Harry is the Bearer of the Green Flame Torch?" Ron asked.  
  
"No, you forgot to mention that rather insignificant detail" Draco replied with a sneer.  
  
"We should go in the Forest" Amala said. "The Torch is near Hogwarts. Perhaps it is in there."  
  
"Let's go" Harry said. "I don't think I could sleep right now."  
  
"We should take some food" Ginny proposed.  
  
"And some sleeping bags" Neville added.  
  
"And learn this text by heart" Jane said.  
  
"And then, on we go" Harry completed.  
  
"We're screwed" Draco said with a sigh. "Well, what the hell are we waiting for?!"  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Amala was going down the corridors silently, trying to reach Gryffindor Tower as quick as possible. She was supposed to take some clothes and things for her and Hermione and Mark and Harry had taken another route, so they wouldn't look suspicious together –since they would probably not be in the school next morning, never mind that night- and they could use the most time they would get. They wouldn't want anybody stopping them soon, would they?  
  
She took a turn and saw somebody else coming on the corridor. It still wasn't curfew, so she didn't worry. Until she saw who it was.  
  
"Hello Amala" said a slow, dark voice.  
  
"Hello, Severus" she replied with a small smile. "Quite the events today, weren't they?"  
  
"Yes, they were" the Professor replied. "What are you doing around here at this time?"  
  
"Well, I, um..."  
  
She didn't know what to say and suspicion seemed to grow in the man. Better say something quick, something that did not resemble 'nothing'.  
  
"I um..."  
  
"Yes?" he asked.  
  
"I was... um..."  
  
"I'm waiting."  
  
"Going to the kitchens to steal some food since everybody in my group of friends is celebrating Towers' escape" she said, looking down, pretending to expect a blow. Well, she got something she didn't expect, that was sure. A laugh.  
  
"Is that all?" he asked. "Tickle the pear. Or do you already know?"  
  
She lifted her head, surprised.  
  
"Um, yeah, I did. Thanks"  
  
Severus smirked.  
  
"Quite the rule breaker, I see. And what would you be doing tonight?"  
  
'Not much' she thought. 'Going to find the Green Flame Torch and putting myself in danger, that sort of thing'. "I have to study, I'm a bit behind on Transfiguration."  
  
"Can you postpone it?" Severus asked.  
  
"Actually, no, I can't" she replied. "I'm supposed to be practicing with Neville and Ginny with Hermione helping us and I can't escape unless I explain the reason. I'm so sorry"  
  
Severus nodded.  
  
"No problem" he replied. "Perhaps tomorrow would be alright?"  
  
"Yes" she replied. "Tomorrow will be fine"  
  
He bid her goodbye and left and she started going to the Gryffindor Tower.  
  
'That's the first time I lied to get myself out of a date with him. But there's nothing better for me to do' she thought. 'Well, the excuse is wonderful. And by tomorrow, either the whole school will know we're missing or we'll be back, so there's no harm done."  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
As the night settled over the now peaceful and quiet grounds of Hogwarts, ten shadows walked silently down to the Forbidden Forest. Ten shadows carrying backpacks, of course.  
  
"Do you think we'll be back soon?" Neville asked.  
  
"No" Draco and Harry answered together.  
  
"We'll most likely miss the week of school" Jane said.  
  
"Not it wouldn't be wonderfully exciting" Mark added.  
  
"Or we'll get ourselves killed and won't come back" Draco said. "Not that it wouldn't be fun" he added, mocking Mark.  
  
"Well, this is it" Ginny said, when they reached the edge of the forest. "and in we go!"  
  
They entered the forest and went in a steady pace, soon not seeing anything behind them, except for trees. Five wands were lit and ten pairs of feet were silently walking on fallen leaves and over tree roots.  
  
The Forest was exactly as Harry remembered it. The trees were growing together closely, the silence was nearly unbearable and the feeling of danger was quite strong. He wondered how unicorns –so pure and defenseless- could survive in the dark place, where every memory he had was connected to some kind of danger. First, there had been Voldemort. Then, the acromantulas. Then the Dementors. In the fifth year, the centaurs and Grawp. Yes, he had been in the fourth year in the Forest, but it had been with Hagrid and on less 'Forbidden Forest' like paths than other times.  
  
Right! Where was Grawp? He hadn't heard anything of Hagrid's younger brother –he could hardly be called little- for a very long time. Was that a good thing?  
  
"Ugh. It's so dark here" Jane said with a whisper.  
  
"No shit?" Draco asked. "Well, at least no dead unicorns this time"  
  
"Dead unicorns?" Amala and Jane asked in the same time.  
  
"Yep. In my first year, there were dead unicorns in the Forest and I was on a detention and had to find out what killed them."  
  
"And you screamed like an idiot when we stumbled across him drinking" Harry said. "Almost got me killed"  
  
"That hadn't been such a bad thing" Draco commented. "What was that, anyway?"  
  
"You mean... you still don't know?" Harry asked.  
  
"No, Potter. I don't. Nobody ever found the urge to tell me. After I ran away, saving my skin –thing which you weren't bright enough to do, may I remind you?-, I met the half-giant and we started searching for you when you appeared on a centaur. Remember?"  
  
Harry raised his eyebrows in surprise. Had it really been like that for Draco? Had it really? How could he not know that was Voldemort?  
  
"It was Voldemort, drinking"  
  
"How could he drink? Wasn't he a spirit?" Draco asked.  
  
"What do you mean, a spirit?"  
  
"Yes, good idea" Luna said. "He was bodiless until two years ago, wasn't he?"  
  
"He was in Quirrel's body!" Harry said. "Of course you know..."  
  
"Actually, no, we don't" Luna said. "In Quirrel's body? But didn't you kill Quirrel in a duel?"  
  
"Well, I did. Sort of. Voldemort couldn't touch me and therefore neither could Quirrel, so he died, burnt by me. The whole 'my mom died to save me' thing you all know about."  
  
"We know nothing of that!" Draco said. "What 'mom died to save you' thing?"  
  
"She died to save me and marked me with her love! Surely, you know this!"  
  
"No, Harry, we don't" Neville said. "So, that was it"  
  
"Yes, yes" he answered.  
  
"Harry... Do you know how all things that happened to you appeared to the school?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Um, no" Harry answered.  
  
"Then, let us tell you" Ron said. "Hermione, go right ahead!"  
  
"Well" the girl started "in your first year, everybody found out that at the end of the school, Professor Quirrel wanted to steal the Philosopher's Stone and that you defeated him and he died."  
  
"So, no Voldemort" Harry said.  
  
"None" Ron said.  
  
"I didn't find out until now!" Draco said.  
  
"Then, your second year" Hermione said. "Something was stunning people and a weird writing was on the wall. You had been found at the scene of the crime and during the Dueling Club you let out the fact that you were a Parselmouth. Everybody freaked. Then, Hermione got stunned and people got confused. Then, Ginny was kidnapped and you went to the Chamber of Secrets –nobody knowing where that was- and you killed the monster and saved Ginny"  
  
"No diary?" Harry asked.  
  
"What diary?" Luna asked.  
  
"Tom Riddle's diary" Draco answered. "My dad was mighty upset Potter destroyed it."  
  
"Right" Hermione said. "Next, your third year. Sirius Black going around the school, wanted to kill you or Ron and was finally caught and then mysteriously disappeared."  
  
"I still wonder how he did it. He wasn't a dark wizard or anything" Draco said. "Do you know anything about it, Potter?"  
  
Harry gaped and almost tripped on a tree root. Hermione went on.  
  
"Fourth year, you get in the contest and everybody knows you want to brag, you love attention, so they hate you. All except Gryffindors, of course. Then, at the end of the Tournament, you disappear and after a while reappear with Cedric's body, saying nothing. The next day, Dumbledore tells everybody that Voldemort did it. No Barty Crouch, no how-he-got-his-body- back. Then, everybody says your crazy. They start hating you"  
  
"I remember that" Harry said dryly.  
  
"Yes, well... So, in your fifth year, they all start to remember how you can speak Parselmouth, how you appeared with Cedric's body, saying nearly nothing, they start believing that you are crazy."  
  
"Well, not that it would be far from truth" Draco said.  
  
"So, you start saying Voldemort is back. Umbridge tears apart everything, the Weasleys escape, everything's a mess, you say Voldemort is back and tell the whole story in the Quibbler, Umbridge goes mad, Quibbler is banned, people start believing you, finally, Voldemort appears at the Ministry and you prove to be right. Lucius Malfoy in jail. And in this year, Sirius Black is cleared."  
  
"Right. How come he's alive?" Draco asked, but he wasn't answered. "I thought Bellatrix killed him."  
  
"Then, Azkaban gets attacked, Malfoy senior is rescued and Towers escapes, nobody knowing if he's on the right side or not"  
  
"Well, he's definitely not on the Dark Lord's side" Draco said. "My dad's written a few letters telling me to keep an eye on him and report his every move. But the guy is so... he's like... he..."  
  
"Yes, we know" Hermione said. "So, you see, Harry, nobody sees things the same way you do. We can see your point of view, but you haven't told us too many things quickly, either."  
  
"Potty holds secrets" Draco commented. "Well, we're much more cheery than at the beginning. What do you say, if acromantulas attack, can we protect ourselves against them?"  
  
"I think so, yes" Hermione replied.  
  
They had walked for quite a while and Harry was starting to wonder exactly where they were going. And then it struck him.  
  
"Where are we going?" he asked, slowly.  
  
"In the direction Towers flew in" Hermione replied. "The book said so."  
  
"But what if we're going in the wrong way?" Harry asked.  
  
"I hope not. Anyway, we can survive. If we don't get the Torch, we might get expelled, but I don't think so. They have to train you, don't they?"  
  
"Yes, well, I wouldn't like to lose all the House points!" Draco said. "Or serve detention forever."  
  
"That means Hufflepuff would win" Jane said with a small chuckle. "All our Houses with nix points and Hufflepuff first on the list, imagine that!"  
  
"I'd rather not. Father would kill me" Draco said. "Losing to Gryffindor is one thing –and it was bad then- but losing to Hufflepuff is definitely worse!"  
  
"Your father beats you if you lose the House Cup?" Ginny asked.  
  
"Let's say that Hufflepuff is dfedefinitelyit's not pleasant" Draco replied. "But he doesn't physically touch me"  
  
"Hexes" Amala muttered. "You have it bad, don't you?"  
  
"Yes" the blond replied. It was something he did not want to share, so he changed the subject. "So, where do you think the Green Torch is?"  
  
"Green Flame Torch" Ginny corrected him.  
  
"Same thing" he replied.  
  
"Don't you think we're making a tad too much noise?" Mark asked. "If there are werewolves, they'll hear us"  
  
"No" Hermione said. "It's the new moon tonight, so no werewolves"  
  
"But what about acromantulas?" Ron asked.  
  
"They don't care" Harry answered. "I hope"  
  
"The Forest isn't dark" Amala said. "It's just Forbidden."  
  
"Huh?" Draco asked, raising an eyebrow at the girl.  
  
"There are things here that aren't bad. But the Forest lives by its own rules and ones who don't know them might get themselves in grave danger"  
  
"Tell me about it?" Harry said.  
  
"Hey, yo, Wrighty!" Draco said. "Snap out of it, you look pretty far away from us"  
  
Harry looked at the girl who was dreamily staring into space.  
  
"I'm here" she replied. "I don't have to snap out of it, I am still here"  
  
"Good to know that and watch out for trees" Draco said.  
  
"But I have this weird feeling here. It's even more powerful than other times... Something enters my mind, so powerful and gentle... Tells me not to fear, it shall help"  
  
"Are you ok?" Mark asked.  
  
"Presence in your mind?!" Draco nearly cried. "A hex! The Imperius!"  
  
"No, no" she replied. "Were it the Imperius, it would tell me what to do and I could not refuse. But it is rather gentle and tells me things... But I can't tell exactly what. It's like a slow whisper and I only get parts of the messages"  
  
"It's a curse. Or a potion" Draco said.  
  
"No, silly" Amala said. "I heard such voices before and I know that they don't try to control me they couldn't. I've heard evil voices and good voices, but this one is clearer than all the others. It's speaking to me. But it won't speak too long."  
  
"What does it say?" Jane asked.  
  
"Many things. But I can't understand all of them, I'm not even close to doing it. But for one, I know we must be careful here, but don't attack everything in sight."  
  
"Are you some kind of a psychic?" Draco asked.  
  
"Actually, yes" Amala said, raising her head and nodding towards Draco. "Well, that explains it!"  
  
Draco goggled his eyes.  
  
"Like Trelawney?"  
  
"No, she's a phony" Amala answered. "And besides, I usually see general- truth things, not the future. Like the Forest not being dark or I can feel spirits and hear calls or magic, but I can't see the future. At least I don't think I can"  
  
'Oh, great, a bloody psychic!" Draco said.  
  
"Let the Seer See and the Bearer Search" Hermione said. "I think you're our Seer, Amala"  
  
"But I can't See" the girl said.  
  
"But hearing must do" Hermione said with a grin. "So, tell us, do you feel the way we should go towards?"  
  
"No" she replied calmly. "Better follow somebody else, I'm most likely to get lost"  
  
"Oh, brother" Draco said.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
A few hours had passed and the scenery seemed to remain the same. The same dark trees, the same dark forest, the same sense of tension, but somewhat more clamed by now since they had got used to it, all seeming to test their power to go on.  
  
"This is boring" Draco commented for what seemed to be the fortieth time.  
  
"Yes, we know" Jane answered. "Who'd have thought? The Forbidden Forest and no bloody threat!"  
  
"Hey, Chasy!" Draco said. "Could this mean you're chasing after the Green Flame Torch?"  
  
"Why, I think you're right!" the girl said with a grin. "Ah, I'm carrying on the tradition. And I'm quite young, too"  
  
"Perhaps you'll die young and you need to follow the tradition" Draco said.  
  
"That's encouraging" Jane said.  
  
They walked silently for a few minutes, Harry wondering if dawn would catch them just the same, walking through the Forest like that. And how large was the Forest, anyway? Was it magical so that it would seem to be smaller than it actually was and stretched for a whole continent? He hoped not. Hey, but if it was the size of a continent and it was only hidden to be that size, it could be Atlantis!  
  
Harry grinned. That was a long shot, but a funny one nevertheless. But what if the real Atlantis was hidden to seem like just a one square meter island? Who'd go on it and see it was actually enormous?  
  
"And what would ten teens be doing in the Forest?" a voice asked and Harry turned to see the speaker, which was definitely not one of their party.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Author's Note: There! Another chappie! And now, try to guess: who is this speaker? The one who guesses has 20 points! So, guys, review and tell me what you thought! Flame if you will.  
  
Now, to my dear fans all over the net!  
  
Thank you!  
  
Skillz: Thank you!  
  
Babyjayy: Thank you and is this soon enough?  
  
The Red Dragons Order: Thank you and I must say that your reviewing abilities leave mine far behind. And also, your reviews are the ones I look forward to most.  
  
Violet: Thank you and yes, I must say that my face is doing a pretty good impression of a tomato.  
  
Akvar: Hello, my dear demon. Decided to drop by? Thanks for the review and ah! Hints are everywhere...  
  
Other chapters:  
  
Harryp/charmedfreak: Thank you. 


	27. The Forest

Disclaimer: as much as I'd love it to be so, it ain't mine. Savvy?  
  
Dedication: to the Red Dragons Order  
  
Author's Note: Sorry for the long wait, guys, but I got kind of a crowded, school and all that. I hardly had time to check my e-mail, never mind writing! Also, I'd like to announce that I've started my own Yahoo! Group –link in the bio-. I'm not finished with it yet, but when I will finish working on it, the following elements will be contained: everything I ever wrote on this account on ff.net, my 'Wars of Fiction' story, which is co- written by me and King Akvar, a few polls, a lot of great pics –not mine-, some editorials and maybe a 'pass it on' story, but I'm not sure about that.  
  
So, on to our story!  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
Chapter 26: The Forest  
  
"And what would ten teens be doing in the Forest?" the voice asked.  
  
Harry saw who it was... And wow... was she an exceptional appearance! He actually didn't know what was more impressing about the twenty year-old looking woman: her face, surrounded by shoulder-long dark brown hair, delicate face, and were those pointed ears?! Or was her slim body more impressing? Or maybe... maybe it was her clothes. She had a short blouse, revealing her abdomen, long loose pants, looking like silk, a mantle hanging on her back, her long elegant gloves or the half-moon scythe-like weapon she had in her hands. She looked other-worldly, to say it in one word. The fact that she wore a necklace with a glowing medallion also helped that impression.  
  
"Holly shit..." Draco muttered.  
  
"Doubling that" Ron said.  
  
She smiled a little.  
  
"I asked, what would ten teens be doing in the forest?"  
  
"We umm..." Hermione said, still staring.  
  
The woman looked at them and her eyes settled on Harry's forehead.  
  
"Are you Harry Potter?" she gently asked.  
  
"Yes, sir... I mean madam" he replied. Sir?! She looked nothing like a man. Must have been reflex.  
  
She chuckled.  
  
"No problem. You have quite the identity card there, Harry. So, you must all be then students of Hogwarts!"  
  
"Yes, yes we are" Jane said. "But who are you?"  
  
"Are you an elf?" Hermione asked, managing to stop gaping.  
  
"An elf?" She asked. "Oh, no. The pointed ears you see and the appearance were a gift from the gods. But I was born as human. And even now I am only half elven. It was a favor from my dearest spiritual father, who saw how much alike I had to the elves. And I will ask again, perhaps this time I will get an answer! What are ten teens doing in the Forbidden Forest, you know this is it, for it is Hogwarts that first called it so, if I remember correctly, and at this time of night, no less?"  
  
"We were umm..." Draco said.  
  
"Yes, I got the umm-ing part" she said with a small chuckle.  
  
"We were searching for something and we said it would be safer to walk in groups" Luna said.  
  
"Ah, yes, safety in numbers" she said. "Well, as I can see, you haven't encountered the giant spiders yet. They were pissed off at me for escaping their hands, err, webs. So, what is the 'something' you are searching for?"  
  
Harry was at a loss. He had expected many things, but encountering someone in the Forbidden Forest who would ask them what they were doing there was not through them.  
  
"We don't even know you, so why should we tell you?" Draco asked.  
  
"Slytherin or Ravenclaw?" she asked.  
  
"Slytherin, but..." Draco started.  
  
"Yes, I can see it now. So, why tell me? Because I know this Forest quite well and I could help you on your path"  
  
"Whoa, whoa, whoa" Draco started saying. "You mean, 'tell me and I'll help'. What, do you think we're crazy?"  
  
"No, I don't" she replied. "Alas, I forgot you don't know me"  
  
"Good point, who are you?" Draco asked.  
  
"Are you asking of my name?" she replied with a question.  
  
"Duh" he replied. He had switched back to Slytherin-mode, her appearance and the surprise of it losing their importance.  
  
"I have many. Which ones would you like? Or better, let me choose" she replied. "I'm often called Demonheart, although I do not agree with that nickname. It's a long story behind it... Or you can call me Sania."  
  
"Err, right, Sania" Harry said.  
  
"Sania?!" Hermione said. "Isn't that the name Towers said before fleeing?"  
  
"Towers? You know Jacky?" she asked.  
  
"Jacky?" Draco asked and she smiled deviously.  
  
"Yes, well, he always hated me when I called him that. So, when has he... fled?"  
  
"Today" Hermione said. "This morning, to be exact. He was cornered by some Aurors and transformed himself in an Ancient Sautaus Dragon and flown away"  
  
"Really?!" she asked. "And he hasn't come to meet me yet. I feel betrayed" she said with a small smile, proving she felt nothing like it. "So, he's flown out of Hoggie. That means Iris is going back and Jacky's on the run"  
  
it was quite amazing to see her say it with small humor, a smile on her lips, feeling comfortable, and yet not seeming quite impressed by the facts.  
  
"Iris?" Mark Evans asked.  
  
"Yes, Iris Rose. She was your teacher. You should remember her" she said in the same slightly amused-not impressed manner. "Now, tell me what 'something' you search for. Or maybe I should just tell you directions? We're on the same side, by the way"  
  
They all stared at her as she started saying.  
  
"Well, the spiders are somewhat to north-east. There is this small giant in north-west. Grawp, I think. The centaurs are straight out north, holding a great meeting. There are a few unicorns towards east; I think they'll be here soon. There's a Phoenix somewhere, but that one keeps moving, so I've no idea where it is. There's a buried treasure in the east! Of course, it's supposed to be hard to get, so... And in the west... many things happen in the west. But if you told me what you're looking for, perhaps we wouldn't waste all day."  
  
"Our business is our own" Ginny said.  
  
"Yes, but do you know what you search for? Or where it might be? Because this Forest is larger than it seems and there are many traps for unsuspecting eyes and many portals to other places, not as peaceful and safe as this forest."  
  
Harry raised an eyebrow. Since when was the Forbidden Forest peaceful and safe?  
  
"And trust me" she continued "I wouldn't have spoken so freely to you if you'd have been anybody else, or if I hadn't been told that you would arrive."  
  
"What?!" Neville said. "You knew we would come?"  
  
"Well, not that you would come. But I had been told a group would seek through the Forest in the search of something I could help find at a time when dragons fly. And in that group, one would be marked so I could see them as whom they were. And one of you is marked."  
  
"Who?" Harry asked.  
  
"Take a guess. Who always carries his ID with him?"  
  
"I... oh, my scar" Harry said.  
  
"Yes. Well, you are a group in search of something and one of you is marked, therefore you must be my group." She said with a smile. "Trust me or not, it makes no difference. You can either tell me and we'll search for what you seek or you can keep walking around through the Forest. So, what do you choose?"  
  
"Could we... consider this in private?" Draco asked.  
  
"Of course" she answered, smiled, turned her back on them and moved away, far enough to not be able to hear them if they didn't speak loudly, but close enough not to lose them from sight.  
  
"So, what do we do?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Tell her to hit the road" Draco said. "I don't know about you, but I definitely do not trust weird women who just appear in the middle of the Forbidden Forest and offer help for nothing in return"  
  
"But there's something about her" Amala said.  
  
"Just my point!" Draco said. "There is something about her. And I don't think I want to know what"  
  
"I kind of agree with Draco, Amala" Harry said. "She is weird. Impressive, beautiful, mesmerizing even, but I don't think we should follow her lead."  
  
"I know, I know..." Amala said. "Maybe we could ask her for something to prove she's on our side?"  
  
"Like what?" Mark asked. "I don't think she'll have anything the Dark Side couldn't have!"  
  
"Kido's right" Draco said. "What could she have?"  
  
"Kido?!" Mark said, a bit offended, but Draco took no notice.  
  
"Well, we can't know until we ask" Jane said. "What's the worst that could happen? Her not having anything."  
  
"What if she attacks us?" Neville asked.  
  
"Well, um, I think we can take her down..." Ginny said.  
  
"Right" Neville said.  
  
"So, what do we do?" Harry asked.  
  
"Ask for a proof she's on our side!" Hermione said.  
  
"And if she has none?" Ron asked.  
  
"Then, we tell her to hit the road!" Draco said.  
  
"I don't agree" Amala said. "Perhaps we'd be losing great help."  
  
"Or perhaps we could end up in Voldemort's hands" Harry said.  
  
"We won't! Elves are good creatures" Amala argued "and even though she's just half-elven does not mean she could be evil. You heard her, she has many things in common with the elves!"  
  
"Gryffindors do not have much connection with reality, do they?" Draco asked. "Hello, people! She said she has much in common with elves, not somebody else!"  
  
"I think she's telling the truth" Luna said, half dreamy.  
  
"Oh, boy..." Draco sad with a sigh. "And how did you come to this astonishing conclusion?"  
  
"She has a good twinkle in her eyes..." Luna said and Draco banged his head against Hermione's shoulder –she was closest-.  
  
"Gryffindiots" he mumbled.  
  
"For your information, she's a Ravenclaw" Hermione told him.  
  
"So what?! She's been affected by the famous Gryffindor idiocy."  
  
"Not that Ravenclaw wouldn't be the brightest House" Ginny said.  
  
"So?!" Harry said, deciding to stop the whole House arguing. "What will our course of action be if she can't prove she's on our side?"  
  
"As sorry as I might be for Amala, we'll tell her to leave us alone" Hermione said and Amala looked at her with a frown.  
  
"Fine!" she said through clenched teeth. "But if we get lost in this bloody forest, it will be your fault!"  
  
"Oooh, Wright is right down mad..." Draco said with a smirk. "So, let's chat with her, shall we?"  
  
They broke the group and made a sign for her to come back, which she did.  
  
"So? What is your decision?" she asked.  
  
"Can you prove you're on our side?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Prove?" she asked. "Um, no, I don't think so... No. Gods." She whispered.  
  
"Then, bye, bye" Draco said.  
  
"Um, wait?" she said when turned his back on her. "I might have something... I dunno... I'll show you everything I've got, if anything helps prove I'm on your side... Just a moment, I'll be right back, ok?"  
  
They all stared at her as she turned her back on them and ran to a tree nearby and picked up a few things which she brought back.  
  
"Thank God I had set camp here, otherwise I'd have had to run all across the Forest" she said with a smile.  
  
She had brought back a small leather bag –but not the normal type, it was a rather weird type, it seemed to be made for someone who walked around forests- and a few bags all tied on a rope.  
  
"What the-?" Draco mumbled.  
  
"So, these are bags with herbs... Elves taught me how to use them for wounds and for other things" she said, showing them the bags on the rope.  
  
"That proves nothing" Draco said.  
  
"I guess not" she replied and took her bag, knelt on the leaves on the ground and started taking thins out. "My food for today" she said, taking out some weird-looking plants "remind me to restock it, some unicorn hair" the little bag with silver hair was put neatly near the plants, on the ground "a vial of powerful healing potion" the vial was put near the unicorn hair "a map of London" the map was right next to the others  
  
"What the bloody hell" Draco muttered, staring at it.  
  
"A pen and a notebook, a spider" the little being was put on the ground gently "wonder how that got there" she commented "a Water Amulet, for summoning water" the blue thing was put next to the others "a dagger" the black-handled weapon was put on the ground, "a Bible..."  
  
"You are joking?" Jane asked.  
  
"Nope" she replied and kept taking out things "a postcard from Greece..."  
  
Luna couldn't manage anymore and started laughing like crazy, tears in her eyes.  
  
"I'm not done yet" Sania muttered "a phoenix feather, some galleons, sickles, knuts, some nuts, some pounds"  
  
The pile of things was getting larger and larger and Amala and Luna were laughing their hearts out as she kept taking things out of her bag.  
  
"An elven necklace" the beautiful necklace was gently put on the pile of things "a phone number of my friend's" a small piece of paper was put on the pile "a Muggle adventure book, a wooden stick –works wonders on vampires..."  
  
"Reason for carrying a wooden stick in a bag while living in a forest: unknown" Draco commented.  
  
"Hey, I like that stick!" she said. "A rock..."  
  
"What the f-?!" Draco said. "Who the hell walks around with a rock in the bag?"  
  
"Me. It's small!"  
  
Jane and Hermione had joined the other girls in laughing their hearts out and Ron was also chuckling like mad. Mark was already on the ground.  
  
"A piece of parchment, three Daily Prophets, soap, shampoo, another dagger, a cockroach, still wondering how my bag keeps getting bugged, a knife, a fork"  
  
"Why drag around a fork in a forest?!" Draco asked.  
  
"A few roots... and that's all"  
  
She looked at her bag and then at the huge pile of things.  
  
"Heh, I guess the engorgement charm does work" she said.  
  
"Well, except for the fact that you're crazy as hell, this proves nothing" Draco said.  
  
"Actually, it proves I have a great bag" she said. "But... I guess apart from that..."  
  
"Actually, Draco, I don't think Death Eaters or their kind carry such things in bags around a forest" Hermione said between chuckles.  
  
"Oh, you never know" he said. "Got anything else in that miracle bag of yours? A hippogriff, maybe?" he asked.  
  
"Um, no, no hippogriff" she said, taking a peek inside.  
  
"Well, then, sorry" Draco said.  
  
"Jack'll have my head!" she said.  
  
"Towers?" Ginny asked.  
  
"No, not... Oh, yeah, Towers. Forgot his name for a second, he used to call himself Gates before that. Unfortunately, everybody though he was the brother of a certain Bill, so he switched it to Towers" she explained.  
  
"What about the brother?" Draco asked. "I don't get it."  
  
"Bill Gates..." she said, looking at him a bit odd.  
  
"I still don't get it" Draco said.  
  
"Oh, no one, just the richest Muggle on the planet..." she said. "You, my friend, know nothing of the Muggle world"  
  
"I don't and I want to keep it that way" Draco said. "So, sorry to leave you, beautiful, but we're on our way"  
  
She sighed, and took another peek in the bag, only to have her eyes widen.  
  
"Right!" she said, her face lighting in a smile. "Got it."  
  
She took out a small round golden, round shaped medallion and showed it to Draco.  
  
"I do believe you know what this is, do you not?" she asked.  
  
"A Golden Amulet" he whispered. "But I've never seen the rune before..."  
  
"Bet you didn't" she said with a small smile. "They're not for sale, ever. They are given by the servants of the Light One who has the rune inside."  
  
"And whom might that be?" Draco asked.  
  
"His name shall not be said, enough to know he is powerful and protector of the ones in the great adventures and who do great deeds"  
  
"Nice choices, then" Draco said. "Choosing those who can take care of themselves"  
  
"Oh, no" she said. "Those are in the greatest need for him. They pass through their tests alone, but guess who guides them, who shows them the way and who watches them from the shadows, remaining unknown?"  
  
"So, he's not so smart in choices" Draco said. "But I don't know the rune"  
  
Hermione had closed up on them and took a peek at the Amulet before nearly crying.  
  
"That rune! It's on our Amulets, too"  
  
"Really?" she asked. "How did you get them?"  
  
"A guy sold them to us on Diagon alley" Hermione said.  
  
"You mean, a guy gave them to you there. I hardly doubt he asked for a lot of money"  
  
"No, it was a ridiculously small amount of money" Hermione said.  
  
"Symbolical" Sania said. "Yes, well, he must've been sent by the Light One..."  
  
"Who's the Light One, anyway?" Harry asked.  
  
"Well, actually, there are few that go by this description" Hermione started.  
  
"Yes, and he is one of them, but as I said, no names" Sania completed. "So, do you trust me now?"  
  
"Yes" Draco said with a sigh.  
  
"Then, let me pack these things and we'll be off" Sania said.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"Where is Potter, Albus?" Severus asked that morning at breakfast.  
  
"I do not know, I have not seen him yet" Albus replied. "But he has been late for breakfast before, so why do you worry?"  
  
"Because his no good friends are missing, too"  
  
"Well, if one is late, Severus, then I find it understandable that the others are not here either."  
  
"But there is something else that bothers me..."  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Draco Malfoy is also missing. And he usually isn't late"  
  
Albus shot a glance towards the Slytherin table.  
  
"Indeed, interesting. I hope there is nothing wrong."  
  
Severus looked around the Hall. His girlfriend wasn't there either. Maybe Albus was right. Maybe it was nothing. But why risk something?  
  
"I'll go ask their colleagues where they are" Severus said. "They might be oversleeping since it is Sunday, but I have a bad feeling"  
  
Albus nodded and Severus got up and went to the Gryffindor table where he immediately spotted Dean and Seamus. Well, why not ask them? But how to get a good answer from the teen? Maybe he'd just cover for Potter.  
  
"Mr. Finnigan!" he snapped.  
  
"Sir?" Seamus said, voce shaking.  
  
"Tell me, what did Potter tell you last night?"  
  
"Excuse me?"  
  
"What did he tell you? How did he reason his not sleeping in his bed tonight?"  
  
"He didn't reason it..." Seamus said.  
  
"No?" Severus asked, raising an eyebrow. "You just entered the bedroom and saw empty beds?"  
  
"Yes, sir. What did he do?"  
  
"Oh, but don't you mean what did they do?" Severus asked.  
  
"Alright, they..." Seamus said.  
  
"Not much. Not much at all. It's just that Mister Weasley, Mister Potter and Mrs. Granger were caught sleeping with a few others in the middle of a bathroom!"  
  
"Who others, sir?" Seamus asked, shakingly.  
  
"I think you know" Severus said, his eyes becoming smaller and looking at him dangerously.  
  
"I... I don't, sir"  
  
"Then you might be involved in this..."  
  
"In what, sir?"  
  
"Don't play games with me, Mister Finnigan!" Severus snapped. "You know very well, what!"  
  
"No, no, sir, I swear!" Seamus said, trembling.  
  
"Then who are?"  
  
"I don't know what you're talking about!" the boy said.  
  
"Boy, who are the ones who didn't sleep in their beds last night, that's who! And you're in their league!"  
  
"N-no... I don't understand, sir..."  
  
Severus was starting to lose his patience. When would the boy spit out names?  
  
"You and Longbottom are in this... But how come you didn't drag him with you when you escaped?"  
  
"Neville? What is he in, sir? No, he didn't sleep in his bed last night, but I wasn't with him"  
  
"Then who was?"  
  
"Maybe Ginny Weasley or Amala or Hermione! I don't know! It wasn't me!"  
  
"What about Parvati Patil?!"  
  
"What about Parvati Patil?" Seamus asked, confused.  
  
'Oops' Severus thought 'wrong shot'.  
  
"Oh, you were with her, then..." Severus said with a smirk.  
  
"Huh?" Seamus asked. "Why would I be with Patil?"  
  
"How should I know, Mr. Thomas?"  
  
This was going very wrong.  
  
"But if you tell me all the names of all those who slept outside their beds I might not send you for a whole month into detention and I just might forget I wanted to take 100 points from Gryffindor"  
  
"Um... Well, there's Jane Chase, Mark Evans, Harry Potter, Neville Longbottom, Ronald Weasley, Hermione Granger, Amala Wright and Ginny Weasley."  
  
"Nobody else?"  
  
"No, sir."  
  
"Well, that's too bad. And I who thought some got away" Severus said with a smirk. "Goodbye Mr. Thomas"  
  
He turned away and left, heading towards the Head table. Interesting. So, eight Gryffindors had slept out of bed last night, including his own girlfriend. What was going on? And as he passed the Ravenclaw table, he heard some voices commenting that Luna Lovegood was also missing. Weirder and weirder. She didn't seem like the kind of girl who rushes in adventures, but then again she had been last year at the Department of Mysteries. And by the way, where was Draco?  
  
He went to the table of his own House and reached Crabbe and Goyle.  
  
"Where is Mr. Malfoy? I had some things to discuss with him" he said towards the two boys.  
  
"We don't know, sir" Crabbe said. Hmm, maybe he could make them say if he had slept in his bedroom last night?  
  
"Did he even sleep in his bed last night or was he with another girl?" Severus asked, a small smile on his lips.  
  
"He didn't sleep in his bed, sir" Goyle said. Thank God for stupidity! And now to make sure the kid gave him that kind of information again. He smiled a bit wider.  
  
"As I thought. Then, I'll search for him myself. Thank you, Mr. Crabbe, Mr. Goyle..."  
  
He nodded goodbye and went back to the Head table, wiping the smile off his face. What was going on?  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"Time we camped!" Sania said, stopping suddenly.  
  
"Thank God!" Ron said. "I was getting really, really, really tired."  
  
"Yeah, I know" she replied. "We've been walking all night"  
  
"No shit?" Draco asked.  
  
"None" she replied with a smile. "Ok, so here comes the really bad part"  
  
"What 'really bad part'?" Ron, Draco and Jane asked at the same time.  
  
"The really bad part" she replied. "Unfortunately, the Green Flame Torch is not in the Forest."  
  
"What?!" most of them asked at the same time.  
  
"That's right. It's not in the Forest" she said.  
  
"Then where the bloody hell is it?!" Draco cried.  
  
"Don't know for sure, but you can get to it by going through some place in Hogwarts."  
  
"Then why did you drag us here?" Ron asked through clenched teeth.  
  
"Because even though the Torch isn't here, the directions towards it are. And I know exactly where."  
  
"So, we're going through this whole Forest to find the directions to the Torch" Jane said desperately.  
  
"Well, to put it shortly, yes" she said.  
  
"You are joking!" Mark cried.  
  
"Actually, no, I'm not!" Sania said. "If I were joking, I would have said: a horse walks into a bar and the bartender asks 'why the long face'?"  
  
Luna started laughing tiredly.  
  
"So, you're not joking" Harry concluded. "Hip, hip, hurrah"  
  
"But don't despair!" Sania said. "This step is necessary to get it, so I haven't brought you here for nothing."  
  
"Great..." Neville mumbled and sat down against a tree. "Can we get some sleep?"  
  
"Sure" she replied. "I'll stay on guard. One day of no-sleep shan't do any harm, anyway I slept the whole day yesterday"  
  
The teens lied down and got themselves comfortable. A night of no sleep plus the previous days' events meant they were out of energy. Harry just took one more peak to the half-elven woman and fell asleep.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"Minerva, I have no idea where they are" Severus said. "Ten of our best students are gone!"  
  
"Out of which eight are from my House..." Minerva answered. "And you don't know where they are either?"  
  
"No. I've told you a thousand times: no!"  
  
"Maybe You-Know-Who..."  
  
"Voldemort has nothing to do with this" Albus said. "I'll get Fawkes to find them."  
  
"But where could they be?" Minerva asked.  
  
"I do not know for certain, but I have a few hunches" the Headmaster replied. "I do believe they might be in the Forbidden Forest"  
  
"The Forbidden For- now, why would they be there?" Minerva asked, while Severus raised an eyebrow.  
  
"It is a magical place. Things have happened there before and I think there are some answers there now" Albus replied. "Fawkes. Do me a favor and get this to Harry Potter, will you?"  
  
The phoenix let out a few trills and took the piece of parchment from the Headmaster's hand and flew right out the window.  
  
"Trust Potter to get into trouble" Severus said.  
  
"I just hope they are alright" Minerva said in a concerned voice.  
  
"I hope so, too. And I believe they are" Albus said. "I believe they are..."  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Sania looked at the ten teens in front of her. Ah, another day with no sleep. Thank God her elven side could stay up so long or she would collapse in tiredness. But this way, she could go on for days in a row.  
  
"Now, where is Dark Claw?" she mumbled to herself. Where was her old friend anyway? She raised her head, hearing sounds of wings. Being half-elven helped a lot. A flaming red phoenix came through the branches of the trees. Unexpected, but welcomed. "Hello, beautiful, who are you?" she asked and it let out a few soft sounds. "I don't speak phoenix, unfortunately" she whispered to it. Then, she noticed that the bird had let a small piece of parchment on her legs. She picked it up and read it.  
  
Dear Harry,  
  
I'm sending this letter through Fawkes since he is the only one who can easily find you. I would like to ask you to come back to school, since the Forbidden Forest is not a place to be. Come back, Harry. And take your friends with you. It is not safe there.  
  
Albus Dumbledore  
  
"So, you're Fawkes" Sania said in a slow voice. "Well, Fawkes, I'm afraid Albus Dumbledore will have to wait. He doesn't know about Harry being the Bearer, does he?"  
  
The bird made a sign that clearly said 'no'.  
  
"I thought so. Well, let me write a letter back, then"  
  
She took out her pen and the parchment she had left and wrote back. Then, the bird took off with the parchment.  
  
"Wish I was a witch" she muttered to herself. "Maybe things would be easier that way"  
  
She looked sadly at the ten teens. Living in the Forbidden Forest was alright, but she missed company. A lot. But her part was far from over, as her spiritual father had said. So, she was to guide them through the darker parts of the Forest and then remain there. Well, at least she had a friend, although not human. Where was he, anyway?  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
At noon, Albus got the reply from Fawkes at the table. The whole student population watched in awe as the fiery bird landed gracefully on the table in front of Dumbledore, but the old man acted completely natural so they assumed this happened a lot to him. Severus, however, knew better.  
  
"Well?" he asked and Dumbledore passed him the note.  
  
Dear Mister Dumbledore,  
  
I am afraid that Harry Potter cannot return to Hogwarts at the time being. As expected, he ahs not told you about his current situation: he is the bearer of the Green Flame Torch and therefore he must seek for it. He has good guidance and should be back in one or two days. I am certain that you could make up some story to cover for him? –not that it will be necessary, once he gets the Torch, but until then-. Also, I'd like to say that there are ten teens here right now –in case there are more missing, please do not blame me-.  
  
Yours,  
  
Sania Demonheart  
  
Severus didn't know whether to smirk or burst in laughter or worry. Yes, trust Potter to get himself in a lot of trouble. Here he was, the Bearer of the Green Flame Torch, a new responsibility, some more trouble. Oh, hell with it. And who was Sania Demonheart, anyway? He knew she'd heard her name before, but where?...  
  
"Oh, my God" he mumbled. "They've met Towers' contact!"  
  
"Yes, they have, Severus" Albus replied. "So they must be safe"  
  
The Potion Master passed the note to Minerva and glared at the Hall. Glaring always made him feel better.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"We're only a few hours away from the spot" Sania said.  
  
"A few hours?!" Draco complained.  
  
"The Forest is huge and it continues in other worlds you don't even know of... If it were at the farthest place from us, it could take us nearly a month to get there, so a few hours is nearly nothing"  
  
"A month?!" Hermione asked. "But how... Certainly, the Forest can't be that huge!"  
  
"Oh, not in Scotland, but it is absolutely large if you measure it in all the worlds it stretches in. I mean, it has to be at least as large as the whole European continent."  
  
"Ok, what worlds?" Draco asked. "You keep saying things about other worlds..."  
  
"Well, there are a few elven worlds I love. I bet four or five are connected to this Forest. Then, there is Alcara. That's a nice world, lots of kings and queens and generally warriors go through there. From all types of worlds. It's a place full of forests and mountains. Wonderful. Also, there is the Dark Forest, but that's a place I've never been in. And there are a few connections to other worlds... But those are generally not known"  
  
"So, you're telling me this is a crossing place?" Draco asked.  
  
"Precisely. And Alcara is, I believe, the place where the Fal'sil have retreated one thousand years ago"  
  
"What the hell are you talking about?" Draco asked.  
  
"The Fal'sil were those who belonged to the kingdom of Falan" Luna explained. "They were nomads and all types of people, from Muggles to pureblooded wizards. I even heard of a few non-humans who joined. Elves and vampires, even a phoenix..."  
  
"Yeah, right" Draco said.  
  
"But she is right" Sania commented. "But after the Ghost War a thousand years ago, they retreated to Alcara"  
  
"What Ghost War?" Mark asked.  
  
"The Ghost War a thousand years ago, when this threat hung over Earth and then something happened and the threat disappeared" Hermione said.  
  
"The war after which Slytherin parted from the other Founders" Draco added. "Yeah, I heard about the Fal'sil, too, but I didn't believe they were real"  
  
"Guess what? They were" Jane said.  
  
"I wish I could join them. They have nothing against Muggles"  
  
"Hmm?" Draco hummed  
  
"I said they have nothing against Muggles" she repeated.  
  
"And people who have something against them annoy you?" he asked.  
  
"Yes." She said with a small laugh. "Seeing that I am a Muggle"  
  
"You're a what?!" Draco said.  
  
"Yes, Draco Malfoy, I am a Muggle" she said with a smile.  
  
"But no... how can... no way..." the other mumbled.  
  
"How come you know of us then? Of wizards?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Simple. My spiritual father told me. He guided me here."  
  
"How?" Jane asked.  
  
"It's a long story"  
  
"It's a long walk" she replied.  
  
"Very well, then" she replied with a sigh. "Well, I'm no witch. Never have I ever made any spell, never have I used a wand. Keep that in mind. Well, I was a normal Muggle child, going to a normal Muggle school and having above normal grades. Yes, everybody agreed I was good at school. Yet something was missing from my life. A part of me wanted adventure, exciting events, freedom. Yes, freedom. The freedom to do what I wanted with my life and I wanted to be able to look at the sunset without anybody asking me what I was doing, I wanted to think and sing without anybody judging me. And then, at that point of my life, He came."  
  
"Who?" asked Hermione.  
  
"My spiritual father. He came to me and told me things that I knew from before, but did not dare believe. He spoke to me of freedom, of my destiny, of courage and bravery. He spoke to me of harmony with nature and battles with enemies. He told me about friends I could have, about triumphs that could be. And I listened."  
  
"And you went with him, just like that?!" asked Neville.  
  
"No, of course not! I was 16!" she said and smiled widely. "But I listened. And weeks after, during a Physics class, his words came back to my mind and his face appeared in my memory. I lost track of the lesson and when the teacher picked me to answer her question, I couldn't answer. She got pretty upset and started telling me about how important Physics are for life and how we must learn as much as possible while we are in school. And His face appeared to my mind and some of his words came back to me. He also spoke of learning, of courage, of daring. My teacher kept babbling on and on and I stopped her and asked her if we should be always attentive. She said yes. I asked her if in life we should look after signs. She had no idea what came over me and asked me what I was talking about. Then I asked her if she thinks that we should live our lives our way, but still learn as much as we can. She said yes. Yes. And I knew it was true. School, colleagues, they taught me nothing any more but random useless facts. I remember I smiled and she was staring at me. And then I said I'll go live my life. And find my destiny."  
  
She stopped and they all stared at her.  
  
"Well? What did you do?" Hermione asked after a while.  
  
"I rushed out of the classroom. Oh, it was obvious, my father had called me and he told me that if I decided to follow my heart, he'd always be with me. I went home and grabbed the things he had given me: clothes he had charmed to be more resistant, a wonderful, long, light sword, a bow and arrows and a... bag, you could call it that had never ending food in it. I got dressed in the black pants and blouse and took the light, perfect shoes and put them on. And I also took my traveling mantle, also given to me by him, a dark red with gold one. I tied my hair in a pony tail and didn't forget to leave some of it out and then fastened everything to myself.  
  
I then left a letter to my parents, telling them I'll visit them and not to worry about me, that I'd be fine. I told them that I had found my Master and he had called me to go with him. Well, I have no idea how they reacted when they got it. But when I'll go back, I'll ask them. And I wasn't lying when I had said he was my Master. He is one for me.  
  
Next thing I knew, I locked the door and got out, leaving the key where I said I would. A few of my colleagues were running towards me and I suddenly realized how little it had taken me to do everything. They told me that my teacher was calling me back. I laughed and I told them that if anybody would want to talk to me, they would come to me, like I would go to them. And then I went back to my school –which, by the way, was quite close to my house- and went to another class in which I had a few friends. It must have been a funny scene. They had an English class and I came in and said I was sorry for interrupting and then I said 'I'm off to find my destiny. Would anybody like to come with me?' They all stared at me. I knew I looked like a warrior or queen or something. Well, nobody volunteered, so I said good bye and left. Then I met my Physics teacher who tried to stop me, but couldn't. And then she asked me to stay until my parents arrived. I knew that if I stopped, then I wouldn't be able to leave, so I left then."  
  
"Wow!" said Hermione.  
  
"Wow indeed. I went on the streets, people starring at me –I must have looked weird in my deep red mantle and with a bow and arrows on my back. I finally got to the edge of the forest near our town, turned back, waved good bye and left."  
  
"And you got here" concluded Harry.  
  
"Not so quick!" she said and laughed. "No, my spiritual father noticed that I left and guided me well. He eventually appeared a few weeks after I left, telling me that I should go at one of the elven cities that were well- hidden. I accepted and he took me there. The elves were very good to me. They taught me many things, about fighting and nature and that kind of things. He used to come around from time to time.  
  
A little more than a year ago, he gave me elven blood –he can do that-. See, I have pointed years! And very good senses too –and do you think I always looked like this?- He said that I had already proved myself to be like an elf, since I loved music and stories and jokes, but also battles and heroic deeds. And then he told me that I should test my knowledge in the Forbidden Forest. I've been here for a year now."  
  
"Wow!" they all said.  
  
"I even made friends with a tiger."  
  
"A tiger?!"  
  
"Oh, yes, a wonderful, yet gentle beast! Dark Claw is his name and he should be around here somewhere. Should being the key word here"  
  
"But if you're half elven, it doesn't mean you're a Muggle" Draco said.  
  
"Slytherin, obviously" she said with a smile. "Still stuck on that part?"  
  
"He's always stuck on that part" Hermione said.  
  
"Not always" Draco said.  
  
"Yes, always" Ron replied.  
  
"You shouldn't be" Sania said. "The blood that runs through our veins can be changed and it is not all that there is. See? I'm a living proof that blood doesn't matter"  
  
"Yeah, maybe" the blond replied.  
  
Sania smiled. They would reach the place soon and then she'd lead them back to Hogwarts. She would rather stay a longer time with them, but she knew she couldn't.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
AN: So, done with another chap. Hope you like it! And as you can see, Sania isn't a Mary Sue, although she might have seemed to be one at the beginning.  
  
To:  
  
Babyjayy: Thank you.  
  
The Red Dragons Order: Thanks and I hope you enjoyed this chapter, too.  
  
Skillz: Thanks! -And I love Snape, too-  
  
Violet: *grins* I like to respond to reviewers, since I love to see who's written one, to see what was written... even if it's a flame! Anyway, thanks for always reviewing and some good news: I don't think I'll stop writing too soon.  
  
Other chapters:  
  
Jimmy: I was thinking in general mode then, with Cho. But I guess you would've forgotten tha review by now.  
  
Aalikane: thanks.  
  
Bored: *bursts out laughing* Should I reply to that? 


	28. What Did I Get Myself Into This Time?

Dedication: to the Red Dragons Order –you're the best, Red-  
  
Disclaimer: Well, I keep saying it ain't mine. If you can't believe it, then you are an idiot.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Chapter 27: What Did I Get Myself Into This Time?!  
  
"We're heeeere" Sania said jollily and made a few more steps into a clearing.  
  
Harry entered the clearing and, to his surprise, saw... absolutely nothing.  
  
"Here where?" he asked.  
  
"Well, the directions to the Green Flame Torch are right here"  
  
"There's nothing here!" Draco said. "What are you talking about?!"  
  
"Well, you didn't expect the directions to be right in the open on a stone table, written on a piece of enchanted yellow parchment, did you?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "Oh my God, you did" she added when she saw their expressions. "The directions are in this clearing. Do you see the bit of green grass over there, greener than the others?"  
  
"No" Mark Evans said.  
  
"Idiot" muttered Draco. "I do" he added loudly.  
  
"There is a stone right beneath it that contains both the directions and the key" Sania said. "Well, fellows, let the bearer get the stone"  
  
Harry raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Why me?"  
  
"Because you're the bearer" Sania answered. "Therefore, it is your job to dig a hole in the ground and get positively dirty while we watch. Well, good luck!"  
  
Draco, Luna and Jane started laughing and the others grinned and snickered. Harry glared and went to the grass and started pulling the grass out of the earth. Surprisingly, it came out easily, like a blanket or something of the sort, earth still holding the grass in one piece. Harry stared at the weird thing and put it next to him. In the uncovered earth he saw the stone Sania had been talking about. He took out the stone and put the grass back.  
  
"Aw, and I wanted to see you full of dirt" Amala said.  
  
"Well, what does it say? What does it say?" Sania said, overly excited. "I never looked at it, don't ask me why, I don't know"  
  
Harry was wondering how he'd clean the stone enough to see what was written on it clearly when he heard a sigh.  
  
"Scourgify!" Hermione said.  
  
"Heh, thanks" he said and the girl shook her head and rolled her eyes.  
  
They all gathered around the stone, Mark Evans jumping around them like a rabbit, saying 'let me see!', but not being able to get a glance at the stone. He decided being short sucked. But, hey, how did Jane get there? Life was just not fair.  
  
Meanwhile, the others were studying the stone. It had a pentagonal shape and writings all around it.  
  
"I, Stoney the first, belong in the small pentagonal gap in the hidden in that special little secret place in the dungeons. See Map of Hogwarts for more details"  
  
Sania and Draco started laughing.  
  
"Well, that's stupid" he said. "And a lot of help, too"  
  
"Mhmm" Jane said. "Stoney the first?! Who wrote this had a weird sense of humor"  
  
"Might as well be the Goblin from Ireland" Ron said.  
  
"Who?!" Sania, Hermione and Harry asked in the same time.  
  
"A guy in children's stories" Draco replied.  
  
"Never heard of him" Hermione said.  
  
"Yeah, well, usually people who go to Hogwarts are past that stage, you know" Draco said, drifting off.  
  
"So, what do we do now?" Jane asked. "This is not something you can guide yourself after"  
  
"Actually, yes, it is" Hermione said. "The Torch must be somewhere in the dungeons and it must be in a secret place there. So, it helps. Kind of"  
  
"Maybe the Marauder's map shows the place" Harry suggested.  
  
"Should I ask what that is?" Sania said, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"No" Harry replied.  
  
"Well, then, we should be getting back to the castle" she said, after eyeing him in a way he didn't like. It felt like being x-rayed. "You can figure it all out after you get out of the Forest"  
  
The others nodded and started heading backwards.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"In the jungle, the mighty jungle, the lion sleeps tonight! Hush my darling, don't fear my darling, the lion sleeps tonight! Hush, my darling, don't fear my darling, the lion sleeps tonight"  
  
Sania lifted her head, hearing the soft noise of someone singing. Jesus, she must have drifted off. How careless was that?! But she could recognize that voice anywhere.  
  
"Varamesh!" she said, standing up.  
  
A tall figure appeared from the trees, looking at her. Obviously, he was the one who had been singing before. Right now, he had stopped and stared at her.  
  
"Sanii" he said, his face breaking into a grin. "My heart has been wishing to see you, Sanii, that is why I have come in the first place"  
  
She smiled.  
  
"Well, hello to you too and nice to see you" she replied. "Have you seen DC, by the way?"  
  
"DC?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "Washington?"  
  
"No, Dark Claw, my tiger!" she said, giggling.  
  
Meanwhile, most of the teens woke up because of the commotion.  
  
"Who.... Where... what?" Draco asked.  
  
"This is an elven friend of mine" she recommended and Hermione's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.  
  
"An elf?!" she asked. "This time, a real elf?!"  
  
"Yes, milady" he answered and smiled at her in a way that reminded her why elves were considered some of the most attractive beings in existence.  
  
"Wicked" Ron mumbled, managing to get himself up. "Wanna join the party?"  
  
He let out a few chuckles.  
  
"No thank you, although it sounds tempting. I came here to return a tiger to his mistress"  
  
"So, you did see him!" Sania said with a smile.  
  
"Claw!" the elf cried and a rather small, sheepish-looking tiger came from behind the trees. "He got lost and couldn't find his way back"  
  
Sania started laughing.  
  
"Crazy tiger!" she said and the beast growled half-menacing, half-pathetic. "Don't worry, I still love you"  
  
"Well, I should go, milady" the elf said. "I bid you farewell and wish to see you soon"  
  
"Hermione, stop drooling" Harry muttered to the girl's ear, making her turn red as the elf left, starting to sing again. It seemed to be 'Lord of the Rings' by Dominator. Heh, the irony!  
  
"Well, you're all up" Sania said, looking over them. "Chop, chop, let's go and no complaints! We'll reach Hoggie soon"  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"We're close" Sania said. "But there is something in the air that makes me think something will not let us go out so easily"  
  
"I have a bad feeling too" Amala said.  
  
"Uh oh" Draco said. "Sounds bad enough to me with only Sania here predicting something, but knowing that Wrighty's a Seer makes it worse"  
  
"Stop mocking me, Draco" Amala said. "I was serious"  
  
"So was I" he replied. "Plus, this is the Forbidden Forest"  
  
They kept walking in silence for a while, but not the comfortable silence that sometimes made them feel just like home, but a tense one which reminded them that probably, the reason for calling it the 'Forbidden' Forest was that it was, indeed dangerous. Yay.  
  
Only a few steps after, they could hear weird sounds as if something was coming towards them. But before they could even wonder what it was, Sania's eyes widened in horror.  
  
"Acromantulas!" she said. "Run, quickly, quickly!"  
  
They started running like crazy, but the sounds became louder and louder.  
  
"Shoot them, or they'll reach us!" she cried and Draco, Jane and Hermione stopped and started shooting random spells at the incoming creatures. "But keep bloody running!" Sania cried. "Oh, we're sooooo screwed!" she muttered.  
  
"We're friends of Hagrid!" Harry cried.  
  
"Mate, that never works" Ron cried back.  
  
"Claw, be a decoy!" Sania cried towards the tiger, but it seemed to have no intention of doing so. But it gave Luna an idea, however, as she cried:  
  
"Harry, get a Patronus!"  
  
Harry stopped and shouted "Expecto Patronum". The silver stag erupted from the tip of his wand and ran towards the acromantulas, creating some kind of a cover. They kept running however, knowing the spiders were far from stopped. Indeed, after a small confusion, the beasts ran again towards them. Harry recast the spell, but it took even shorter for the spiders to get away from it.  
  
"This isn't working..." Mark cried, pale knowing he was the last of the group.  
  
"Protegus! Protegus! Protegus!" Draco shouted and the spiders hit the shield, collapsing. "It won't last long" he warned. "Potter, stop1 Serpensotia! Engorgio! Engorgio!"  
  
A snake came out the tip of his wand and landed on the forest ground with a small thump, only to become larger than a boa constrictor soon.  
  
"Tell it to attack the bloody spiders, Potter!" he said and Harry turned to the thing.  
  
*-Attack the ssspidersss-* Harry hissed.  
  
*-Sssssure. My pleasssssure-* it replied and jumped towards the spiders.  
  
"Remind me to get myself a pet snake one day" Harry said as they kept running. The snake seemed to be doing a great job, but it still didn't mean they could stop running, did it?  
  
So, they kept running, but this time the distraction was great enough to leave the spiders way behind. So, after about five minutes, they stopped running and started panting.  
  
"God... that... was... close" Harry mumbled.  
  
The others nodded. Only Sania looked a bit less tired. Probably because she spent the whole day outdoors.  
  
"I hoped that never happened again" she said, taking a deep breath.  
  
"You've been chased by acromantulas before?" Draco asked.  
  
"Oh, yeah" she replied.  
  
"How'd you get away?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Well, once I was with elves, another time we were interrupted by a herd... no, pack... group of centaurs and the third time I jumped in a tree and ran through the forest air way. Hoped never to do that again."  
  
Draco snorted.  
  
"So, we should be really close to the edge of the Forest now" Sania added. "Let's make a few steps."  
  
They got back on their feet –well, Amala, Mark, Neville and Luna did, the others never sat down- and started walking again, not paying any attention to Mark's complaints –'guuuys, wait for me! Can't we stay here for a while?'-. Indeed, they made it in nearly half an hour.  
  
"Thanks for the help" Harry said to Sania when they reached the edge of the forest.  
  
"No problem, I was loosing my time anyways" she replied. "Plus, how often can you get chased by acromantulas, eh?"  
  
They chuckled and one by one shook her hand or hugged her.  
  
"Hey, I'll miss you" Amala said, a tear rolling down her cheek.  
  
"Miss you too" Sania replied. "Come by and visit sometime." She thought over for a second and added: "second thought, don't. Maybe I'll drop by. Farewell"  
  
She smiled at them one more time and they turned and started walking towards Hogwarts, when Draco turned said to the others:  
  
"You guys go ahead and enter the castle, I'll be right there"  
  
He turned on his heels and went back to Sania –who was leaning against a tree-, who raised an eyebrow, seeing him rush back to her in the fading light of the sunset.  
  
"Yes?" she asked.  
  
"When will I see you again?"  
  
"I don't know" she replied truthfully.  
  
"Pity. Look, I generally hate Muggles, but you're an exception"  
  
"Um... Thanks" she said, looking at him weird. "So, your point is?" she asked as if she'd been blind and didn't see it.  
  
He got impossibly close to her and put his hand on the tree behind her neck and asked:  
  
"You don't guess?"  
  
"How... romantic" she said, with a snort. "You expect me to fall into your hands with this?"  
  
"No, I expect you already did" he replied, making her smile and her eyes to narrow, making her look even more beautiful and elfish.  
  
"I don't think any of your actions may have made me fall in love with you" she said in a low whisper.  
  
"It must be the Malfoy charm, then" he answered.  
  
"You don't want a relationship, Draco" she said. "And I don't think I've fallen for you and frankly, I'd be the first to know"  
  
"Well, it's a good thing you didn't, otherwise I'd have to play romantic" he said. "Come on, Sania, let's go out for a while"  
  
"I'm no slut, Malfoy" she replied.  
  
"I know" he said, raising an eyebrow. "Never said you were."  
  
"I'm still looking for a nice guy"  
  
"But while you are, no use to be single, you know"  
  
"Mhmm. But I have no intention in being cheated with anybody" she said.  
  
"No fear of that" Draco said. "I wouldn't dream to cheat on you"  
  
"No, you'd just do it"  
  
"Ah, yeah, maybe" he admitted. "So?"  
  
She just smiled, so he leaned on her and kissed her. To his surprise, she kissed him back and somehow her hand ended up tangled in his hair. But she broke the kiss too soon for Draco's pleasure and said with a smile:  
  
"You're a good kisser and I had been wondering about that for a while. Unfortunately, that was all I was willing to give. Good luck with your love life!"  
  
Draco groaned and tried to kiss her again, but before he knew it, she was out of his arms.  
  
"Come back?" he pleaded, but she just smiled and shook her head.  
  
"Sorry, Dragon. As I said, good luck in your love life. Come, Clawsie and tell me since when was your inner self a pussycat? Don't you dare fight against spiders?"  
  
Draco just watched her go and left towards the castle himself. He hated to be rejected and he just had been. And she even had the nerve to make it seem as if she'd fall for him eventually! Why, the Slytherin! But was that a promise? Maybe, maybe a small one? Oh, he knew she wouldn't do that to just anybody –as she had said, she was no slut- but he could sense she had just been playing by his rules. Damn the woman!  
  
He entered the castle and headed towards the dungeons and eventually to his dorm, where he collapsed in bad. Man, was he tired...  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
The nine students were walking towards Hogwarts, chuckling at Draco's expense.  
  
"Oh, he likes her, he likes her" Jane said. "Could you see the way he looked at her?"  
  
"Yes" Hermione answered and giggled. "But she'll probably rub his face in the dirt"  
  
"In a very nice and delicate way" Amala added, giggling.  
  
"Don't you think she might just go out with him?" Ron asked.  
  
"No!" the girls answered like one.  
  
"Why not?" Neville asked.  
  
"Because he's so obviously a don Juan" Ginny answered. "If I were her, I'd toy a bit with him and sow him I'm not in his hands"  
  
"Do I want any details on that?" Ron asked.  
  
"No" she answered giggling.  
  
"Oh, tooo many details" he said. "Bad, bad mental images"  
  
The others started laughing. And they laughed until they entered the castle of Hogwarts encountering –what luck...- Filch and Snape. They froze in mid laughter and everything went deadly quiet for a few moments.  
  
"Care to explain where you have been for the past two nights?" Snape asked in a quiet, menacing tone. Amala felt everything pressing down on her. Not good.  
  
"In the F-Forbidden F-F-F-Forest, sir" Neville surprisingly said.  
  
"And what were you doing in the Forest?" the Potion Master asked with an icy glare.  
  
"Well, we don't know if you have found out, sir, but Harry..." Ginny started.  
  
"Potter?!" Snape spat. "So, you are the cause of this?"  
  
"His destiny is the cause of this" Amala said, looking him in the eye.  
  
"Destiny? What exactly can destiny do so that all of you enter the Forbidden Forest?!"  
  
"Many things, sir" Amala answered. "Destiny plays an important role in life"  
  
"What would you know, Wright?" he asked, glaring darkly at his girlfriend.  
  
"I know things, Professor Snape" she said, pushing her chin a bit forward.  
  
"You know nothing, Wright. The whole world gets together to protect 'Golden Boy' Potter and he runs off in the middle of the Forbidden Forest because of his destiny?!"  
  
"There is more to be said that shall not right here for unknown ears may listen and hear" she said like in a small chant.  
  
"My, my, aren't we in trouble?" Filch muttered, enjoying the show. He loved to humiliate people, but Snape was the king of humiliation himself.  
  
"What do you mean by that, Wright?" Snape asked in a low growl.  
  
"Ask Dumbledore" she replied.  
  
"Fifty points from all of you. For each and every one of you" he added.  
  
"You can't do that!" Amala said. "Professor, don't!"  
  
"I will do what I want, Wright and you just won yourself a month of detention!"  
  
"Not fair!" she said. "I just spoke up when you asked questions"  
  
"Wright, with me, now!" he cried. "And perhaps you could explain why Malfoy is missing?"  
  
"Malfoy's a bit behind, sir" Harry muttered darkly.  
  
"If he's smart enough to stay back, then I shall not deduct points from him or put him in detention!"  
  
"Not fair!" Amala said.  
  
"Miss-Wright-you-are-in-a-lot-of-trouble-do-not and I repeat, do not make it worse! The others, free to go!"  
  
Filch seemed a bit disappointed, but let it pass and the students scattered to their common rooms. With Amala, however it was another story. Snape didn't say a word until they reached his office. Then, he entered, cast a silencing charm and turned back to her, not seeing that she was fighting hard not to snap at him and to look down. But rage was boiling through her veins.  
  
"Amala, what the hell were you thinking?" Severus asked, fuming. "Going out in the Forrest like that!"  
  
"I was helping Harry" she said, backing down and staring at the ground.  
  
"And you even lied to me!" he said, mad. "You told me that..."  
  
"I had to say it, otherwise you'd have stopped us!" she cried, tears in her eyes, raising her eyes to meet his, but then immediately swallowed and looked down. "Please, stop yelling..." she added in a lower voice.  
  
"How dare you tell me to stop yelling?!" he snapped. "I'm older than you!"  
  
"WHAT?!" she cried, looking back up to him again. "How can you shove that up my throat?!"  
  
"Stop yelling!" he commanded her, angry to see her dare raise her voice and eyes like that and to whom? To him!  
  
"Look who's talking!" she cried pissed off, refusing to back down now. "Excuse me, I'm not the one who started this!" she said, rolling her eyes and shaking her head.  
  
"You were the one who went in the Forrest!" he said, glaring at her with his worst glare. "Do you have any idea..."  
  
"Yes, and I would do it again, and again and again! It's called friendship, you git!" she said, nearly screaming  
  
"Friendship does not mean you can go kill yourself!" he spat.  
  
"But we were ten people! It wasn't as if I went in there by myself!" she said, shooting her head forward and putting her hand on her chest.  
  
"Shut up, will you?!" he commanded, pissed off with her dare.  
  
"I'm not your average student, Severus! You can't shut me up like that!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. "I'm your ruddy girlfriend!"  
  
"Don't be cheeky!" he said, frowning.  
  
"Cheeky?!" she shrieked. "Cheeky?! How dare you call me cheeky, you slime ball!"  
  
"How did you call me?!" he boomed, enraged by her yelling. "I can't believe you just called me that! You little, fussy girl who knows nothing and I repeat, nothing about me and dare call yourself my girlfriend!"  
  
"And who's fault is that?!" she cried. "I'm trying, Severus, I'm trying but you're goddamned difficult to deal with! Did you ever look at yourself in the mirror?!"  
  
"Did you?! Going after teachers twice your age, you idiotic girl!" he cried.  
  
Her eyes filled with tears of anger and her face was so tense and her frown was so deep he was surprised to hear her speak quietly, her voice shaking in pain and anger.  
  
"How dare you?! How dare you turn this against me?"  
  
"I can and I will!" he replied, angrily. "What, you think I love you? Foolish girl, think I'd fall for you? Not a bloody chance."  
  
"But... but" she mumbled, suddenly shaking.  
  
"I don't, snap out of it. It hurts nothing to see you cry" he spat. 'Wish that hurts' he thought to himself.  
  
Well, that had been a lie, he realized when she broke down into tears and fell on the armchair, sobbing. The moment she did that, he realized that he did care and bit his tongue.  
  
"Um... Amala?" he asked, a bit confused. He didn't mean to make her cry like that. Maybe make her cry with fear, but definitely not destroyed.  
  
"Leave me alone" she said, sobbing, her voice hoarse.  
  
"Look at me" he said in a low growl.  
  
"Get the fuck out of here" she said, a bit louder and he realized just how hurt she was. She had never used the word 'fuck' before.  
  
"Amala, look at me" he said again. He didn't know what exactly he'd do when she'd look at him, but that really didn't matter.  
  
"I said get out of here, Severus!" she cried and picked up one of his vials with potions from the table and threw it hard at him, while he barely managed to get out of the way. "Get out! GET OUT!"  
  
He decided it was a great idea and nearly ran out the door, away from the flying vials. When he reached out of the place, he noted somewhere in the back of his mind that the room he had just left was part of his personal quarters, but also that he didn't quite care. Who'd have known she could get to be like that?  
  
He wondered a bit until he reached his classroom and just sat on the teacher's chair, thinking. Why was she acting like that? She'd never yelled at him before, did she? She was all sugar and sweetness... And he forgot she had feelings. Shit. Maybe he had been a bit too mean and secretive. But it wasn't like she should have gone in the Forbidden Forest in the first place! And why was she so cheeky, had she no respect for him? He was older... No, that argument didn't quite work well here. She was his girlfriend and therefore his equal... He hadn't been quite respectful had he?  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
The door to the office opened and Amala didn't even look towards it.  
  
"I said get the Hell out of here!"  
  
"Oh, my, perhaps this is not the right time?" she heard a voice from the door and turned to see something that made her gulp.  
  
"Heh, sorry, Professor Dumbledore, sir" she said. "I'm... um... I'm..."  
  
"Upset" he completed the sentence. "It's not a problem."  
  
"Maybe you want to know what I'm doing here..." she said in a hoarse voice.  
  
"No, I got the picture" he replied. "Actually, I had come to see Severus, but I understand he is not here right now"  
  
"No sir. I have no idea where he is"  
  
"There's no problem. All I wanted to ask about was your well being"  
  
She let out a short laugh.  
  
"Well, I'm not too well, now am I?"  
  
"Severus tends to be a pretty difficult man" Dumbledore replied and ended up with a sobbing girl in his arms.  
  
"Pretty difficult is too little said" she sobbed.  
  
"I know."  
  
"God, and you must be wondering about the others" she said in a low voice. "They're all fine, sir. Even Draco, although he is a little late. Stood there with our guide, Sania... Towers' contact. And Harry managed to get something in order to find the Torch"  
  
"Well, I understood all is alright when I saw you here, although you are not fine" he replied and she let out a sob, but then pulled back.  
  
"Sorry to be crying on you like this, sir, but you look a lot like my grandfather"  
  
"No problem" he replied. "None at all. But do not put what Severus says at heart, sometimes he says things just to hurt people"  
  
She snorted a little.  
  
"I should go to bed, sir" she said. "I feel tired, didn't get too much sleep"  
  
Dumbledore nodded and helped her get up.  
  
"Will you manage to get to bed?" he asked.  
  
"Oh, yes, sir. I'm stronger than I seem"  
  
He led her out of the dungeons and then their roads parted. Soon, she was in her bed, not knowing exactly how she'd gotten there but not caring at all. She fell asleep as soon as her head touched the pillow.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
AN: Mwahaha! A Snape Amala fight! Bet you didn't see it coming, did ya?  
  
Thanks:  
  
Babyjayy: Thank you!  
  
Violet: Thanks! I love you!  
  
The Red Dragons Order: Thank you and, yes, the line's from LotR.  
  
Other chapters:  
  
Harryp/charmedfreak: Thanks. And I like the pairing!  
  
Well, sorry to reply so short but I'm short of time! Cya soon! 


	29. The Son of the Lord and the Torch

Disclaimer: Don't own anything.  
  
Dedication: to the Red Dragons Order.  
  
Author's Note: I wanted to make this a longer chapter, since I had a bit –okay, a bit more- inspiration and somehow it felt right not to write a few short chapters, but a longer one.  
  
And sorry it took so long, but I had a lot of physics to take care of –went to the National Contest of Physics. Seems like I'm on the 59th place! Yay! Hey, what, I consider it good... We were 114 in total, from the whole country, selected in County contests...- Anyways, I should stop babbling and go on with the story!  
  
Chapter 28: The Son of the Lord and the Torch  
  
"There is nothing in life as beautiful as the sound of music and I wish I could send it to you through a piece of paper. However, such a thing is not possible, so I can't send you feelings as easily as that. But I will tell you to be confident and never, never forget that inner source of all magic. My dear children, don't forget yourselves...  
  
And on a different note, I will tell you that you need to be cautious. Play your life games with great attention or you will pay for the moments you slip. And as for the ones who have Golden Amulets, wear them. I feel you might need them in a while.  
  
I am afraid that there will be no more letters after this one and you might never see me again. But if you do, it will be either in mistake or at times of great events. And now, I shall say goodbye to all of you and, in case I shall never see you again, have happy lives and never forget your hearts.  
  
J. Towers"  
  
Harry stared at the letter –waaay longer than the short paragraphs here at the bottom, but generally filled with useless facts, just warnings and wishes of well- and had a weird feeling. Well, he hadn't been very attached to Jack Towers, but the fact that he might never see him again made him feel a bit empty inside.  
  
"It feels weird for him to tell us he might never see us again" Hermione said. "Usually people say they'll meet again soon, but not Towers"  
  
"Perhaps we should start wearing those Amulets" Harry murmured. The Amulets had been mentioned in various parts of the letter, although the only place where Towers had specifically said they should wear them was the end of the letter.  
  
"Maybe" Hermione agreed.  
  
The two were in the common room in the Gryffindor Tower, along with Ron, Neville and Ginny. Amala had read the letter but she had retreated to another place of the room. After her fight with Snape, she had blamed a few bad headaches and kept away from people, staring into space. She had only given them a very short notice of what had happened -"We had a fight, now leave me alone"- and then stood away from them in her own world.  
  
It was now Monday night and tomorrow they would have Defence Against the Dark Arts with a teacher they didn't know. But for now, taking Towers' advice was probably the best idea. Who knew what the mad, angry and completely furious Gryffindors would do to the eight of them who had lost more points than they had in one simple night! Everybody had cursed, yelled and even tried to hex them when it all came out. But now they were ignoring the group and seemed to want to do it for the whole year.  
  
"I liked the guy and he stood here even less than any other teachers, except probably Rose!" Ginny complained. "Life is just not fair!"  
  
At that moment, Mark and Jane came through the portrait hole.  
  
"I hate Quiddich" Mark decided. "I'm simply not cut out for it!"  
  
"But I am" Jane said with a smirk. "Hey, guys, what's up?"  
  
"Towers sent a letter" Harry said and showed it to them. "I have a Golden Amulet, I should really start wearing it."  
  
"You do so" Amala said. "I'm off to my detention and God knows I hate it"  
  
She left through the portrait hole, with the same far away look she had had for quite a while.  
  
"Poor girl, I wonder what happened to her" Neville said, a look of compassion in his eyes.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Amala knocked at the entrance door to the office in the dungeons and entered without waiting for reply. Well, if she had waited, it would have been quite a wait, since Snape wasn't anywhere around.  
  
"Professor?" she asked, coldly, but no reply came. "Snape!" she dared cry, but still no reply. "Hell with you!" she said through clenched teeth and turned to the door. But just as she did so, she felt something trickling up her spine and a devious and somehow evil smile crept up her lips. "Oh, this time I will get you, Snape!"  
  
She turned on her heels and went towards his desk in a confident manner. She opened the drawers looking through them. What could go wrong? He had just confessed he had been using her –why, that idiot, greasy, slimy git!-, he had taken all the points from their House, he had given her a month of detention, so what else could he do, huh?  
  
She opened the drawers with a steady hand and a determined look, although she had no clue what she was looking for. But she would find something.  
  
"Water's running in the wrong direction/ Got a feeling it's a mixed up sign/ I can see it in my own reflection/Something funny's going on inside myself/ Don't know what is pushing me higher /It's the static on the floor below/ Then it drops, it catches like fire/ It's the sound of, the sound of the underground!" she sang. Heh, it really fitted! There was something funny going on! And she was underground. And something was running in the wrong direction. Who knew she could be a vengeful?! Or was she just plain nuts? Well, now, what would be the point of figuring it out?  
  
She slammed the door to his desk when she saw nothing of any kind of importance in it. So, she started searching something along the walls, searching for something, anything! She reached a taller cupboard she had never seen him open –well, she had never seen him open a jar with a preserved octopus in it either, but she decided that wasn't worth while- and tried to open it. Unfortunately, the alohomora wasn't effective, so she knew there would be something important in it. She smiled a wicked smile and muttered the levitation spell, got it down and put it on the floor.  
  
"When the front door doesn't open, go to the backdoor!" she said loudly, the same smile on her face. She took out of her pocket a pen and transfigured it –with a bit of difficulty- into an extra-sharp knife. Then, as a second thought, she added a few dents and somehow managed to make it work like a chain saw. Actually, she was surprised herself. That was advanced transfiguration and usually a bit too difficult for her. Ah, well, who was she to question such a nice gift?  
  
So, she took her chain saw and cut through the cupboard like butter. Then, she placed the piece of wood down gently and started looking through the drawer. So, she found a few potions –what a surprise...-, a few very, very, very rare ingredients –another surprise- a few pieces of parchment with unimportant –for Amala- data on them, like a few Death Eater plans and all that and, as if waiting for her, a map of the Hogwarts dungeons. Seeing that it wasn't completed, she assumed that Snape was drawing it. It felt like it, too. And so she saw that his bedroom had three corridors leading through it –one from an upper level –good to know, definitely good to know- , one to his office –to be used at this certain moment!- and one third, extremely branched out one, but it was unfinished on the map. To be explored right now.  
  
"I love you, but I don't like you, don't like you, don't like you!" she sang and started laughing. She took a piece of parchment from his desk and muttered a spell to copy the map on it. And it worked! Then, she put the map back, put the back of the drawer back –she started laughing only when she thought of putting the back of the drawer back. Not that it was extremely funny, but she felt the need to do something in order not to burst into tears-. Then, she sealed it so that nobody could see that it was ever cut down and levitated it back to the wall.  
  
Then, she studied the map and managed to find the passage to Snape's bedroom quite easily and left through it, map safely in her pocket, wand lighting the way. Thank God for secret passages that were easy to use! –this one was behind a few shelves and opened easily if you knew where to pull the door-. Not three minutes later, Snape entered the office and correctly guessed she must have left when he hadn't been there. However, he didn't even think through where.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Amala made it to his dorm and found the entrance to the other corridor and started walking cautiously through it. But, after a while, she forgot to be cautious and started walking, as usually, where she felt she had to go through. Well, she felt wonderful at first, then just good and finally she realized she had no idea how to get back. But how many corridors could there be? She turned on her heels, determined to go back when she heard something like drums and involuntarily shivered. She realized the tunnel had taken her waaaay below the dungeons and suddenly wondered what the drums were. She started walking fast and quietly back, but she heard the drums in front of her, so she turned back and moved as silently as a shadow. But the drums were following her quickly, so she started running, the bit of light erupting from her wand helping her only not to crash into walls, but not more. She kept running and running, feeling the thing close onto her and hearing the drums louder and louder.  
  
"Oh, God, oh, God" she muttered and sped up even more, but the drums seemed to get louder and louder, beating right behind her and she started to panic. Who cared where the tunnels lead her? She had to get away, far, far, far away from the drums, quickly! She heard a scream like a Necrow's on her tale and her heart froze in her chest and she started running like she never had before! But the drums and the shriek were closing in on her! She feared even turning her head, she just kept running and running. And if the shrieks and drums weren't enough, she saw something like fire lights on the walls around her. She let out a scream of her own and saw a Necrow fly in front of her and shriek and she stopped in the middle of the corridor and screamed louder than she ever did before. The Necrow attacked, but she ducked and started running with the speed of a flying dragon down the corridors, screaming in terror.  
  
The Necrow shrieked behind her and flew fast enough to hit her in the back of her head, but Amala hit it without turning and the bird lost its speed. She ran and ran and ran, but she felt her body lose its power and when she turned after a corner, she crashed into something soft and black. Powerful arms wrapped around her and a soft, but somehow inhuman voice said to her quietly:  
  
"Shhh, you are safe now"  
  
She realized how hard she shivered and just held on tight to the man. She could still hear the shriek of the Necrow and the drums, but she felt safe with the man. Then, the drums and the shrieks faded away and even after they completely disappeared, she held on to the man as if he was a lifeline. Only after five minutes did she dare to look him in the eyes.  
  
Well, he looked human, but there still was something inhuman about him, something she couldn't quite understand. He had black hair, wild, brown eyes and tanned skin. She just stared at him for a while and then she asked:  
  
"Who are you?"  
  
He smiled gently.  
  
"I am a Guardian of Death, but even more than that, I am a Messenger of Death and Knight of Death. She is my mother and Mistress, Death and I am her child"  
  
"That's morbid" Amala whispered.  
  
"No, it is not" he said with a small smile. "Death is also the one that changes all that there is. She is what comes before birth. She is the one who destroys to leave place for Life to build. What would this place be if one wouldn't change, if one would never die? And you know she is a real presence... You have met her, haven't you?"  
  
Amala shivered.  
  
"Yes, sir, I have. Will you kill me?"  
  
He let out a small laugh.  
  
"Death never kills without reason, child. And now she wishes for you to stay alive. Sirius Black died so you could be born, but he wasn't supposed to stay so... But Death and Life are only parts of the One who plays the Game of Existence and who are we to try to understand this game before our time?"  
  
Amala just stared at him.  
  
"Right..." she muttered. "Um, in that case, could you help me out of here?"  
  
"I will... But I must ask you to be careful next time you come here. It is a place full of danger and fear, where only the brave survive. The Necrow was not real, it was a part of darkness that wanted to kill you here. But it will not. Not while I, the Prince of Starlight, am here!"  
  
She smiled at him.  
  
"I promise I won't come back! I have no intention to get myself killed, you know... What is this place here for, anyway?"  
  
"It is the so-called 'way out'. One can exit the Chamber of Secrets through here, but one can get lost trying to find the entrance to it back. And one can also exit the room my father, the Lord of Darkness, has put in this castle through this place. But by time, many dark creatures came here, under the earth. Death told me to clean this mess up and unfortunately I must follow her orders."  
  
"Your father is the Lord of Darkness?!" Amala asked.  
  
"Jack Strois, yes, that is him" the Everything of Death –as Amala had humorously named him- said. "He is my true father and I am his only child –biological one-. At my birth, one Seer told him that I would die while still young and she was right. I was cornered by enemies and murdered, but Death kept me close to her and I became her spiritual son, if you could say so"  
  
"So, you are dead" Amala concluded, deciding to wonder about the weirdness of the situation later. If she started thinking about the fact that the guy next to her was dead, she wouldn't find anything else useful about him and what would be the use of that?!  
  
"Have you learnt nothing? There is no such thing as 'dead'. There is something named 'death', but one cannot really die, since life is in all things."  
  
"But you died" she argued. Wow, she was talking to a dead guy!  
  
"Yes, I have. But Sirius Black has, too. And you have, too. The difference is, you preferred to come back to your normal lives, whereas I had to follow her path and now I am immortal"  
  
"I didn't die" Amala argued again.  
  
"Oh, but you did" he replied. "When you went to save him. You passed through the veil and you died. And she let you go back where you had come through. But she didn't forget to take out some parts of you which you didn't know and which were wrong... But this a whole theory, Amala Wright. Perhaps another time we can talk about Death"  
  
She closed her mouth and walked with him for a while, as he led her out of there.  
  
"You should know that the next time you see Jack Towers will be the last time you see him" the Everything of Death said out of the blue.  
  
"What?" she asked.  
  
"You should know that the next time you see Jack Towers will be the last time you see him" he repeated, with even the same intonation.  
  
"Why?" Amala asked.  
  
"Because of my Mistress. One of you will die, Amala"  
  
She shivered when she heard that.  
  
"Which one of us?"  
  
He stared into space and then seemed to have found an answer:  
  
"The one which needs to die and only that one"  
  
"Thanks for the explicit answer" she said, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Welcomed" he replied as he led her through the dark corridors. Then, something struck her.  
  
"How come I can see? I mean, it was very, very dark when I ran through here" she asked.  
  
"I called a bit of light. No use to run into walls, now is there?" he asked.  
  
"But where is the source of light? I can't see it"  
  
"We are the source. That's why you can't see" he replied. "And here, Amala Wright, is the place where you were supposed to get to"  
  
She stared at him as he led her to a wall with two holes in them, as if something had to be fitted in. She stared at the two holes and saw the place lighten up a bit and could see two inscriptions in the wall. One said 'Stoney the First' and the other 'Stoney the Second'. Why did that sound familiar...? Ah, right, because the stone in the Forest had the inscription saying it was Stoney the First on it. So, this was where it fitted!  
  
"Who came up with crazy names?" Amala questioned.  
  
"I'm afraid the king of the elves" he replied. "Father linked this place to another world, it's like a door to the elven realm. So he asked the elf what he wanted the door to be like and he proposed the current arrangement."  
  
"The elven realm?" Amala asked softly.  
  
"Yes, there is a door here, for a reason unknown, since there is a passageway in the Forbidden Forest. But I stopped questioning my Father a long time ago, it's useless. This is close to the entrance in these tunnels, you will find the way back here easily."  
  
"Where is the second stone?" Amala asked.  
  
"In the room Father placed here. Ask for it and you will get it"  
  
"What's your name?"  
  
He looked in her eyes and smiled.  
  
"There are many things you wish to know, don't you? Mark Strois, the Prince of Starlight, Dark Angel and Knight of Death. Other questions?"  
  
"No, thank you, Mark"  
  
He bowed his head gently.  
  
"The way out is through that corridor. When you come back, it is the only way you can get here, but if you are not careful, you can pass this place without seeing it. Goodbye, Amala Wright"  
  
"Goodbye, Mark, my Angel" she replied and he turned his back on her... And then she saw the pitch black wings on his back. They were the size of angel wings, but they looked like dragon wings, just a lot more... Noble and black and silky. "You're winged?!" she asked, gaping.  
  
"Why, yes" he replied turning back. "I thought you'd noticed by now. Ancient Black Dragon wings. Useful and beautiful"  
  
She just nodded, gaping and then turned back and left towards Snape's bedroom.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Severus Snape collapsed in his bed and stared at the ceiling. What would he do about Amala? He had hurt her feelings, but how should he make it up to her? Yes, true, he hated apologizing, but he now considered her his and couldn't let her go. She was his, wasn't she?  
  
Maybe he should conjure up some flowers –or maybe pick them up somewhere, he wasn't quite sure how you conjured such things. That was the general rule, wasn't it? Hurt a woman-buy her flowers. Or maybe he should say he was sorry and beg for her to come back... nah, forget it. Maybe he should wait and see what happened? But no, no, she seemed pretty hurt, so not doing anything would probably have a bad effect.  
  
Maybe he should ask somebody for help. Hah! Even the thought of it made him laugh –"Hey, Minerva, could you come here for a second? You know, I have a girlfriend who I hurt badly, what should I do?"-. Really bad idea. Or maybe ask Dumbledore. Now, that was even worse. He'd probably come up with some really weird idea. Well, thank God he had time to think, he had no idea what he would do if Amala came in at that certain moment.  
  
But he found out what he would do in about two seconds, when his secret passage opened and through it came Amala in the flesh.  
  
"What the hell? Amala?" he asked, gaping for the first time in many years.  
  
Her face switched from thoughtful –which she was when she came in- to furious.  
  
"Don't you Amala me, Snape!"  
  
Snape? That was bad, wasn't it?  
  
"What were you doing in that passage?!"  
  
"Well, that's my. Own. Business" she said, stressing each word and glaring at him. "You still have the cheek to ask me questions like this when you declare that you USED me, you idiot?!"  
  
"Used you? I said no such thing!" he defended.  
  
"You didn't say it, Snape! But that is exactly what you did, remember?!" she cried. Severus didn't remember seeing her with her eyes glittering like that ever.  
  
"What? No" he defended.  
  
"You didn't, did you?" she asked, eyes narrowed dangerously, arms crossed on her chest. "You just happened to pretend to like me, God knows why... Well, I have news for you, Snape! I'm a bloody human being and won't take being treated like scum!"  
  
"Amala..." he started.  
  
"What am I to you, Severus? Am I a silly little girl who you hope to sleep with soon or what? A bit of fun? Hm? Answer me!"  
  
He involuntarily gulped, seeing her with glittering angry eyes and arms crossed on her chest, but decided to answer nevertheless.  
  
"Listen, you're more than that" he said. "I..." he couldn't continue.  
  
"You what?" she asked coldly.  
  
"I... didn't mean what I said. I needed to make you understand that you mustn't go in the Forest again and I said everything that came into my mind."  
  
Her eyes seemed to soften a little, anger leaving them.  
  
"Hey, you do care..." she mumbled.  
  
Severus took a deep breath and then admitted it:  
  
"Yes. Are we back to where we were before?"  
  
It hurt. He was admitting he cared, that he wanted her... Where was he getting to? She, on the other hand smiled deviously.  
  
"Yes, but I want you to do something for me"  
  
"What?" he asked. Great, first she appears through his passage, then she has a fight, now she wants something...  
  
"Say you're sorry" she replied, taking a step forward. He swallowed and glared at her. If he refused, it would make her go ballistic, wouldn't it? So, he only had one way. Screw women.  
  
"I'm sorry" he said through clenched teeth and she went closer to him and hugged him.  
  
"Apology accepted" she said and he could actually hear her smiling. He felt like one of those lions at the circus who are trained for show and trapped, their dignity taken away... Was he getting there? Maybe. And he hated it.  
  
"What were you doing here, anyway?" he asked and she started laughing.  
  
"I was upset and wanted to do something bad to you and managed to find this passage somehow... But don't worry, I haven't done anything bad."  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"Guys, I found the place where we should put Stoney the First" Amala told her group when she entered the common room, a grin on her face. The others gaped to see her like she was –all happy and jolly-, since she had left for detention in a really bad mood.  
  
"Um, Amala, what happened?" Ginny asked and she raised her eyebrows in surprise.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"Usually, people go to Snape's detentions happy and come back sad, not the other way around!" the girl said.  
  
"Oh" she said realization on her face. "I had no detention, Snape wasn't there when I got there. But I did a completely suicidal thing and searched through his files and found a map where a few secret passages were. Took one of them and found what we were looking for"  
  
"Aha" the others replied.  
  
"So, tell us exactly what happened" Ginny said.  
  
"Well, I entered his office and saw he wasn't there so I looked around and found this map in a cupboard" she said, considering that how she opened the thing was not to be said "then, I saw that one of the secret passages on the map led from Snape's bedroom to somewhere deep down, but the map wasn't complete, so I decided to check it out"  
  
"Wait a sec- Snape's bedroom?" Ron said. "Ewww. How'd you get there anyway?"  
  
"Another secret passage on the map" Amala replied. "So, I entered the place, but somehow managed to get lost and then I started hearing drums... It was completely creepy. Then, a Necrow started to attack me and flames started dancing around on the walls..."  
  
"God" Hermione muttered.  
  
"But I ran into somebody. I mean, literally ran into him. I made a turn around a corner and collapsed into him and somehow all the drums, the Necrow and the flames disappeared."  
  
"Who was he?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Mark something, son of the Lord of Darkness who put the room where we go into in this school and... Guardian of Death, Knight of Death and something else of Death, Dark Angel and I think he mentioned Prince of Starlight"  
  
"Ah, right. And how did this guy end up in the Hogwarts underground?" Ron asked.  
  
"Said Death sent him to clean up the place from dark creatures" Amala replied with a shrug.  
  
"Riiight" Ron said, with a nod and widened eyes that showed clearly he believed no such thing.  
  
"Mark, you said?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Yes, Mark" Amala replied.  
  
"I'll have to go check him out, perhaps I'll find out something" the walking, talking library said. "I never heard of the son of the Lord of Darkness before"  
  
"So, first we have to go in our special room and get Stoney the Second" Amala said, thinking the conversation should get back to its track. "Mark said all we have to do is ask for it"  
  
"Let's hope it's that easy" Neville said.  
  
"Then, we must go through that passage and see what happens when we put the Stones together in those holes in the wall" Ginny completed. "Well, what do we have to lose? Not House points, that's for sure. I don't think we have any"  
  
"Seems like Hufflepuff will win the cup this year" Jane said with a smirk. "They're ten points better than Slytherin –did you know McGonagall took a hundred points from them on different reasons when she heard Snape didn't punish Malfoy?-"  
  
The Gryffindors snickered. Yep, trust McGonagall to even the score.  
  
"What happened to Ravenclaw?" Mark asked.  
  
"They were left behind when two of its students were caught snogging in a classroom after curfew. McGonagall's classroom" Ginny said with a snort. "Forty points behind Hufflepuff"  
  
"Well, if we have nothing to lose, tomorrow we'll go to our room!" Amala proposed and they all nodded.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"Wonder who the new teacher is" Ron told Harry who was sitting next to him. "He hadn't been here yesterday, the fifth years said they stood here alone"  
  
"Maybe he won't come today, either" Harry replied.  
  
"I wish he does" Hermione said. "There have to be new things to learn and I hate losing a day's lesson"  
  
"You do" Harry said.  
  
"But we don't" Ron completed.  
  
Hermione opened her mouth to say something, but the teacher came in and they were all surprised that it wasn't a 'he'. It was a 'she'.  
  
"Hello again!" Iris Rose said, a smile on her lips. "I see Jack Towers has decided to um... hit the skies, so Professor Dumbledore asked me to come back and teach. He also hoped that this foolishness with changing this teacher once or more times a year would stop. Frankly, so do I. Also, I would like to make a small announcement: the Lady of Light herself, Naranesh, one of the purest beings to ever live, will come visit Hogwarts. It will be a great event"  
  
"A lot of things seem to be happening" Harry muttered to Ron.  
  
"Mister Potter, do you have anything you would like to say?" Iris asked, turning towards him. Damn, the woman had good hearing!  
  
"No, no miss" he replied. She just had to see him!  
  
"But what did you just tell you colleague?" she kindly asked.  
  
Harry sent her a sheepish smile.  
  
"That a lot of things are happening"  
  
She nodded and looked at him a bit thoughtful.  
  
"A new era approaches, Mister Potter. That is why all things seem to be changing now. It happened one thousand years ago, it happens now... And God knows how it'll turn out this time. But in these times, follow your hearts. All decisions you take from your heart will be good until the end"  
  
The rest of the lesson, she told them about a few counter curses and helped them with them. And of course, made a few 'teacher change' jokes, even proposing some new people for the Defence class.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
That night, Amala was waiting for the others to come to Snape's bedroom. She was supposed to find out if he was there and if he came anywhere nearby, to drag him away –like in his office- and then get to them as quickly as possible. She had planned everything. If he came, she'd take him to his office and make sure he was busy with her –not that she'd mind kissing him- and if he left for his bedroom first, she'd run down the passage to his bedroom as fast as she could, make it there before him and then jump into the other passage, hoping the others had made it. If he let her leave first, she'd run down the corridors to his bedroom. If Filch caught her or she wouldn't make it there before him, she'd say she'd forgotten something or that she'd wanted to ask him a thing or another.  
  
But now, it was all alright. He hadn't come... yet. If he came when they entered the passage, they'd have to confess –and lose about a thousand points, probably-. The others were taking Stoney the Second from where they'd left him –in the secret room- and had left her a bit of time to get Snape out of the way, if necessary. Actually, getting the Stoney was easier than they suspected: they'd just entered the room and asked for the Stoney and voila! That book that had welcomed them there had fallen from the shelf –all by itself- and flipped open, the stone falling our of its pages and a 'good luck on your journey' message in it.  
  
And where were the others? Were they afraid or something? She would kill them if they chickened out. But just then, the group came, making her let out her breath.  
  
"He's not here, come on, quickly!"  
  
They entered Snape's quarters –which nobody else but Amala had seen- and then she took them to the passageway and led them to the ... door, if you could call it that.  
  
Harry took out the two stones and put them in the right spots. The wall opened just like in a muggle movie and they all entered the dark place, Snape showing up in about four minutes in his quarters. For the second time, he was very close, not that anybody knew that.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Okay, Draco was starting to get bored. They'd dragged him to get to find the Torch and now, now they went through a long and dark corridor, just like the one they had previously been on. And he had hoped they'd just open the damned wall, get the Torch from a nicely decorated room and get the hell out of there. But noooo... They had to go through a tunnel that probably went on until Japan!  
  
He mumbled a few swear words against the Four Founders. Why on Earth did they build such a thing?!  
  
And then, finally! A black door. Maybe a room? Potter opened the door with a shacking hand and they all entered in a medium-sized beautiful, black room with a one-foot table in the middle, a bowl of something on fire on it. In other words, it was a bowl with fire in an empty room. Joy.  
  
And then, something black came out of nowhere and landed on a perch above the fire.  
  
'Hope it tastes good roasted' Draco thought, but when he got a better glimpse at the bird, his eyes goggled and he gulped. A Necrow.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Jack Towers lied down on his back, in the middle of an elven realm, near a nice waterfall. So, he was officially out of the human realm for a while. Trust Aurors to know absolutely nothing of who is friend and who is foe. His head jerked up as he felt something familiar come over him.  
  
A brown eyed man with spiky black hair came next to him and sat down on the fresh grass.  
  
"Having a though time?"  
  
"Yes, Master" he replied. "How are you?"  
  
"A bit afraid. Harry is going for the Torch right about now"  
  
"How do you know?" Jack asked.  
  
"Take a guess"  
  
"Ah, right, you know everything" Jack replied and stared at the skies. "So, what do I do now?"  
  
"You get your dragon posterior off the grass and go find Mayhowl and get him to the Dark Forest. Got it?"  
  
"Not fair" Jack mumbled. "Don't I get a bit of rest?"  
  
"You'll get all the rest you want and even more after the school year finishes. Now, you need to work fast."  
  
"Yes, o, great one!" he replied and got off the grass. "Then what?"  
  
"Then you go find Naranesh and stay with her until she goes to Hogwarts"  
  
Suddenly, Jack smiled widely.  
  
"Well, now, it's worth it! I'd love to see your Mistress!"  
  
The Master smiled at him gently and left, cloak fluttering behind him.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Okay, Harry wasn't too comfortable, seeing that Necrow up there, on that perch and giving no sign whatsoever that it was going to be cooked, although it was barely a foot over the flames. He took out his wand, wondering when it would shriek or strike, but it opened its beak and an inhuman voice, but speaking in English and definitely not one that belonging to a strangled child, could be heard from the big, black bird.  
  
"Where do you go?" it asked.  
  
"No business of yours" Draco replied after gulping.  
  
"Oh, but it is, but it is" it replied and stretched its wings. "I am the Guard!"  
  
"So, um, how do we pass?" Harry asked and the bird let its wings down.  
  
"Tell me what you seek" it said.  
  
"I seek the Green Flame Torch" he replied and heard somewhere in the back a sound that resembled somebody hitting his forehead.  
  
"The Torch, you say" the Necrow said. "The Torch is there, oh, yes... But for what reason?"  
  
"I'm the bearer" Harry replied.  
  
"Really now, Potter, you really want to prove your idiocy?" Draco asked.  
  
The black bird gave Draco a weird look and then turned its gaze back to Harry.  
  
"The blonde is a weird friend" it commented. "But he speaks wisely. Your heart is good, young one, but your frankness could bring you great problems"  
  
Okay, now Harry felt weird. Did a bird just told him he wasn't supposed to tell it what it asked?  
  
"Luckily, I am on your side... But you must pass a few tests, out of which one is mine"  
  
The teens stared at it and it spread its wings and took off and circled the room once, then it returned to its perch above the fire.  
  
"If a light angel came to you/ And told you he was sent to serve/ You and only you with verve/ Then what exactly would you do?  
  
"Is this a riddle?" Draco asked and the Necrow shook its head.  
  
"It is a question" it replied. "It is your test. Pass it and go forward, don't and go back."  
  
They stared at each other and then Jane asked:  
  
"How many tries?"  
  
The Necrow seemed to consider it for a minute and then replied:  
  
"The original test was if someone would come in, he'd have half an hour to solve it. But since you are ten, I think ten minutes will suffice"  
  
They gulped and started to shoot random answers to the bird.  
  
"Thank it!" Ginny said, but the Necrow shook its head.  
  
"Order it to help us!" Draco said, but the Necrow shook its head again.  
  
"Ask it to help others" Ginny said and the Necrow shook its head again, although it gave her a weird look.  
  
"Ask it to send a message to God" Mark said. The bird looked at him bored.  
  
"Decline?" Jane asked shyly.  
  
"Why decline?" the bird asked.  
  
"Because... because why should it come to serve us... I mean... we're not that important" she said, stuttering.  
  
The bird stretched its wings and gave a loud shriek that surprisingly didn't resemble any kind of a tortured creature, but it felt wild and powerful. But nevertheless, they had to cover their ears. That sound was way too loud for any sane person to listen to!  
  
"For crying out loud!" Draco said over the shriek.  
  
"Argh, needed a good shriek" the bird said. "Uncover your ears kids and I suppose I should tell you next time I do that, right? And I do believe it should be 'for shrieking out loud', child"  
  
"Child?" Draco mouthed.  
  
"I am older than all of you together, so for me you are still fledglings" it replied. "The girl was right, you should decline. So, this test you've passed."  
  
"If you don't mind me asking, I always thought Necrows were... um... different. How come you're like this?" Hermione asked politely.  
  
"I, child" it replied "am a very old Necrow who comes from a family of what you would call 'superior birds'. We were more intelligent and powerful than the others. When we were created, the gift we received was conscience. We knew who we were, we could understand... We were preferred to other Necrows since our intelligence made us more powerful. But intelligence combined with conscience was a curse for the dark wizards. After a while, we refused to help them and retreated to the wild. I was born in the wild and there the Lord of Darkness found me and he took me here to guard this entrance... He used to come here from time to time, but not anymore."  
  
"So, you're a better Necrow with conscience" Draco said.  
  
"To shorten it greatly, yes" the bird replied. "And I like you, children, you have a certain... certain I don't know... something about you all that says you are good. Even the blonde dark wizard"  
  
"I'm not good!" Draco said, frowning and the bird seemed to be smiling, if a bird can actually smile.  
  
"Of course not" it replied. "I have a liking in you, but you must pass forward and I cannot help you there. But if you survive, come visit!"  
  
"That's encouraging" Draco muttered. "So, birdy, how do we go forward?"  
  
"Through there" it answered and pointed with its wing at a part of the wall that opened immediately. "And beware the rabbit!"  
  
"Beware the rabbit, beware the rabbit" Draco muttered. "Yeah, right as if a rabbit could harm us..."  
  
They went through the wall, the others saying goodbye to the weird Necrow. Then, they entered a dark corridor and Harry started wondering if this was all a patience test. This way, it would take them years to get from one place to another through corridors.  
  
Or, at least, he thought it would be the normal corridor. But then again, since when was his life normal? When the wall closed behind him, the 'Stargate' theme started playing around them. How wonderful was that? Maybe they had to face a whole bunch of extraterrestrials, huh?  
  
"Hermione, what do you make of this?" he asked.  
  
"Um... not much" she replied. "It sounds like the 'Stargate' theme"  
  
"Yeah, crossed my mind, too" Harry replied.  
  
"Guys, what's 'Stargate'?" Ron asked.  
  
"A Muggle movie where a bunch of archeologists find a gate that leads to another planet in the Universe. They go through it and encounter a weird alien specie that lives inside humans and that has taken control of them on that planet. It's a nice, Egypt combined alien-themed movie" Hermione replied.  
  
"What does Egypt have to do with aliens?" Ron asked.  
  
"Um, the aliens took control of Egyptians and got them to the other world. They also acted like Egyptian gods. In the movie, Ra was there. In the series there were a whole bunch" Harry replied.  
  
And then, the music started changing to this weirder, dark song from the nice beginning.  
  
"This is not going well!" Neville said, shaking.  
  
Shadows started playing on the walls and they all stopped. Then, Jane cried:  
  
"JUST RUN!"  
  
Well, it seemed like a good idea, and they started running, wherever they went, the walls turning from black to gold, the place turning from dark to light and the shadows playing on the walls behind them.  
  
"Shitshitshitshitshit!" Harry could hear Draco mumble. Well, he agreed.  
  
Then, the shadows got larger and larger and a falcon flew right in front of them and turned into a human being. The song changed into something weird and they all stopped and watched horrified as the tall, dark wizard took out a wand and started waving it in front of them, singing but not hexing.  
  
"Stupefy!" Draco cried, but the spell went right through the person, who looked up scared, although the spell had passed right through it. "What the- ?"  
  
The person started running towards them and they got out of the way, but Jane shot a spell at the feet of the attacker. And as the spell –a petrifying one- hit the man, he collapsed to the ground and instantly turned into a rabbit.  
  
"Wow, that was a great illusion charm" Hermione said, looking at the petrified rabbit. "Wonder how it was got to actually play its part here"  
  
They heard some wings fluttering and saw the Necrow come close to them.  
  
"Hello again. I see you've passed your second test. And what a nice rabbit it is! Free it, it will be used for future tests"  
  
Jane nodded and removed the charm.  
  
"How come you're here?" she asked.  
  
"Ah, child, I can come after you but I can't assist you with your tests!" it replied. "And as you could probably see, the rabbit was not a true rabbit, but a mere conjured up one with certain reactions to certain events. Nice pass of the test. You were running in circles, by the way, did you notice that?"  
  
"I only took three rights" Hermione said. "Maybe we haven't been through one complete circle.  
  
"Oh, but you have!" the bird replied. "The walls are curved, enough to be another corner but not enough for you to see it. So, if you don't know this, you can't find your way back either"  
  
"Ingenious" Draco said. "So, do you lead us out of here, too?"  
  
"Why yes, yes I do" it replied and pointed with its wing at the wall that opened. "No warning this time."  
  
The ten went through the wall and ended up in a room. The wall closed behind them and a piece of parchment appeared in front of them.  
  
"Make the right choices" Harry read.  
  
"Oh, yeah and we really have what to chose from" Draco said, looking around at the empty walls. But just as he said it, images appeared on the walls. On one wall, on their left, was a pile of money. On their right, there was a beautiful woman that looked goddess-like.  
  
"I choose the goddess" Draco said, drooling a bit. When nothing happened, Harry had a spur of the moment inspiration and took out his wand and pointed it at the wall. The images shivered and two others appeared, two dragons.  
  
"Now what?" Jane asked.  
  
"I think one of them is a Hungarian Horntail and the other is a something Ancient" Hermione said. "Choose the non-Hungarian one Harry"  
  
Harry pointed his wand at the other dragon and images shivered and disappeared, this time two images of perfectly identical Necrows appearing.  
  
"Wow, what do we choose, what do we choose?" Draco asked sarcastically. "The Necrow or the Necrow?"  
  
"I'd say the Necrow, if you ask me" Jane said, shaking her head.  
  
Amala looked at both images and went next to a wall and touched the image. A grimace appeared on her face and she went to the other wall and touched it.  
  
"Choose this one, Harry" she said. "It feels better. The other one seems to be the one that chased me around this place, this one could be the guardian"  
  
Harry hesitated but pointed his wand at the wall Amala was next to. The image shivered and disappeared and the Necrow guard came through a door behind them.  
  
"Hey, you chose me over that idiot!" he said jollily. "Thank God, I thought you wouldn't make this one. I'm starting to like you kids more and more. Next test and warning: watch your backs"  
  
A wall opened and they all went through it and ended up in a dark forest.  
  
"Cool" Draco said. "Although the guy who made this had an unhealthy obsession with Necrows, he was one hell of a wizard"  
  
The others nodded and kept going through the forest, further and further, when Mark, who was in the back of the row, gave a loud shriek and they all turned towards him, wands out, only to see a black creature on the small kid.  
  
"Stupefy!" Harry cried, along with four or five others and the creature fell on the kid stupefied.  
  
"Get me out of here!" Mark cried and Neville levitated the creature off Mark. "Thank you!"  
  
At that moment, another creature attacked Harry from behind and he turned quickly towards it, shooting a spell of some sort.  
  
"What are these?" Neville asked, spinning around, eyes wide opened.  
  
"They look like panthers" Hermione suggested and was attacked by one from behind. As quickly as she got it off her, she saw the others were attacked from behind, too.  
  
"Quickly, make pairs and watch your backs!" she cried, having an idea.  
  
She got back in back with Ron and told him:  
  
"Whatever you do, don't turn back"  
  
The others paired quickly, Draco with Jane, Ginny and Neville, Harry and Luna and Amala with Mark. As if it were magic –which it probably was- no creature appeared again.  
  
"Guess what, they only attack from behind" Hermione said. "That's why the guard told us to watch our backs"  
  
"So, as long as we're back in back, we're safe" Draco said. "Let's go forward. Jane, lean against me and let me guide you"  
  
She nodded, but then realized he of course couldn't see.  
  
"Okay, lead the way"  
  
All the groups stated moving, the ones in the walking direction going slowly forward, the others backward. If it weren't a very dark scenery and the possible attack of panther-creatures, it would have been quite a funny scene. But since it was a dark scenery and the panther-like creatures could return, nobody felt like laughing.  
  
But after a few steps, they could hear a soft breathing noise and out of the trees came a black dragon.  
  
"Congratulations for passing your tests until here. I am afraid, however, to say that you have one more test. You must face me"  
  
"Oh, great" Jane muttered. "As in a duel?"  
  
"Yes" it replied.  
  
"You're an Ancient Black Dragon, right?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Yes, yes I am" it replied. "You can break the pairs, the panthers shall not attack. Stupefy me and you can go forward"  
  
"Oh, ok, then" Draco said. "Stupefy!"  
  
The spell directly hit the dragon which was unaffected.  
  
"Did I ever mention how Ancient Dragons are nearly impossible to hurt?" Hermione asked and the dragon blinked once and then spread its wings slowly and uncaring, while the students were shooting random spells at it. Then, it breathed in and breathed out fire, only giving them enough time to duck or jump out of the way. Then, they started shooting spells at it... uselessly.  
  
"Hermione, what do we do?" Harry cried.  
  
"I don't know!" she replied. "Stupefy?"  
  
Harry started shooting spells everywhere. Now, where was a dragon's weak spot? Stomach? Nope, not it. How about that place above the stomach? Chest? No... Where was it?! Where was it?! Ah, he knew he'd heard something about a dragon's weak spot somewhere... Triwizard Tournament!  
  
"Stupefy!" he cried, aiming for his eyes.  
  
The Dragon roared and fell on the ground, stiff.  
  
"That took care of him!" Draco said, breathing hard. "So, what do we do now?"  
  
"Go forward, of course" Ron said, moving cautiously around the reptile's body.  
  
"But look at the dragon... we can't just leave him like that..." Draco said. "I mean, come on..."  
  
"You want to bring it back?" Ron asked. "Are you out of your mind, Malfoy?!"  
  
"It's not our enemy, I think it was just a test" the blonde replied. "Plus, if it attacks again, we know what to do now..."  
  
Ron grumbled and frowned.  
  
"Right. You do it, then, if you're so smart!"  
  
Harry could swear he'd heard that line before, or something like it, but he didn't have time to ponder it now, because Draco went to the Black Dragon and muttered an 'Ennervate'. In its eye, of course. The dragon groaned and nearly burnt Draco as it coughed or did something similar to coughing.  
  
"Thank you" it said, waving its wings a little. "You have no idea how unnerving that is"  
  
"Actually, I do" the blonde replied. "So, how do we go forward?"  
  
"Dragon heart, that's what you are" the dragon said and lifted itself back on its legs. "Come, children, I'll lead your way past the next task, if you desire. You were supposed to prove kindness, but you already have..."  
  
It went in front of them, shaking slightly. It yawned casually and then, with an enormous strength, hit the wall in front of him with its tail, causing it to turn to dust.  
  
"There you go. Shortened path" it said. "Actually, you could have made it to the Torch by simply going through the Lord of Darkness's room, but then again, he hid the entrance pretty good."  
  
"You mean, we could have come here without passing the tests?" Draco asked.  
  
"Yes" the dragon answered and Draco hit himself in the head. "All you had to do was go in it and say you wanted to continue your journey in the name of Light and that it should let you, if it considered you worthy of it, cross."  
  
"Great. So, all this, with the Forest and everything was..." Amala said.  
  
"Yes, completely useless" the dragon replied. "But a nice journey nevertheless. We were aware of it from here"  
  
"This is all a good joke, right?" Amala asked palely.  
  
"These tests were" the dragon replied. "I mean, the room he has created hadn't given the Stoney to you unless it knew you would pass the tests."  
  
Luna started laughing madly and soon Ginny joined. They all passed through the place where the wall had been and ended up in a wonderful place, which looked like a clearing in a forest. And in the middle of it, a beautiful torch burning a green flame stood, shining like no other torch. It was impossible to describe it, but also impossible not to admire. Such a glow! Such a beautiful flame! Such a wonderful white-stone sculpted torch! It was tall and it didn't stand straight, but a bit bowed, to the north, if Harry guessed right. He managed to move his legs, although remaining awed. He went to it and put his right hand on it.  
  
Power rushed through him and he knew it came from the majestic Torch now in his hand. He tried to pick it up, but it was very heavy. Just as he started wondering how he would manage to carry it, though, it lost weight and became as light as a feather in his hand. He raised it a few centimeters off the ground and walked with it towards the others.  
  
"Let's go" he said, feeling like muttering, but surprising himself by speaking loud and majestic.  
  
The dragon shook its head and lead the way. The Necrow joined them out of nowhere and they all went back to Hogwarts.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"Well, fellows, here we are" Jane said. "Dragon, Necrow, nice to meet you, but this is where our roads part"  
  
"Indeed they do" the Necrow replied. "Farewell, children, and take care of yourselves!"  
  
"Take care, too" they replied and the two creatures left with an amazing speed.  
  
"Weirdos" Draco commented and they went through the wall right into Snape's bedroom.  
  
"At least he isn't here" Hermione said. "Imagine what would happen if he were"  
  
"He'd gap at the Torch" Harry replied majestically. Weird enough, the magical object made him feel and seem like a noble anything he did. "What do we do now?"  
  
"Go to Dumbledore" Mark replied. "He would know best what to do"  
  
"I hate to agree, but the kid's right" Draco replied. "As much as I despise having to go to the Muggle lover, we should do it"  
  
"Oh, brother" Ron said, rolling his eyes. "Well, here we go. Thank God it's night, or we could meet somebody on the way"  
  
"Wonder why Snape isn't here?" Luna asked.  
  
"Maybe he's hunting on students?" Amala proposed. 'Or maybe' she thought to herself, 'maybe he's at Voldemort's hideout'  
  
They quietly exited the man's bedroom and walked as quickly and quietly as possible to the Headmaster's office. Surprisingly, they didn't meet anybody on the way. And, not surprisingly, the Headmaster wasn't in his office. Most probably, like any normal person, he was asleep at that hour... Wait a second! Since when was Albus Dumbledore normal?!  
  
"Hey, Fawkes" Harry said to the bird on the perch, which had woken up when they had entered. "Care to call the Headmaster for us?"  
  
The bird nodded and flew through a door. Soon, they heard some weird noises, including something that sounded a lot like "I'm up, I'm up" from the room and then a bit of silence afterwards the Headmaster himself –dressed in some blue night robes-.  
  
"What happ-"  
  
It was the first time Harry heard the Headmaster stop in the middle of the sentence. But he understood why. The Torch looked as mesmerizing as it had when Harry had took it as it burnt in the middle of the office. Dumbledore was, also for a first time, gaping slightly, his mouth just barely dropped. But only for a second, before he closed it and smiled blissfully.  
  
"The Green Flame Torch" he said. "I never thought I'd live to see it. Come, tell me all about how you managed to get it"  
  
And that was exactly what they did, all the time Dumbledore taking admiring peaks at the Torch.  
  
"A Necrow, you say" he commented. "Yes, I did hear of the phenomena of them turning light. I do believe that is what Mr. Towers intended to do with his own Necrow. I am afraid the bird has been exterminated, though, by the Minister. But tell me, there is one thing I didn't understand. How did you reach this part of Hogwarts?"  
  
"Through Severus's... nape's bedroom" Amala replied, stuttering a bit.  
  
"Through Severus Snape's bedroom" Dumbledore repeated, nodding. "Interesting, I knew he had very powerful charms on that place. Maybe he went in or out of his bedroom not five minutes before or after you did"  
  
"Probably" Amala said. "I can't believe the luck!"  
  
Dumbledore looked casually around the walls, not taking in consideration the last statement.  
  
"I shall inform Professor Snape of these secret passages" he said. "For now, I think you should all go to bed and leave the Torch here"  
  
They all nodded, except for Harry.  
  
"Leave the Torch?" he asked, speaking for the first time in the Headmaster's presence, since the others had spoken before.  
  
Dumbledore looked at him, eyes going large for a second before he said:  
  
"Maybe you shouldn't, Harry. Take it with you. And ask it to stay hidden and it will. As I see, it has given you all its power..."  
  
Harry nodded and they left towards their bedrooms.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
The Torch had indeed hid itself so that only Harry could see it and the boy had slept under its protective light. But now, now they had to have the most boring class in history: History class, of course.  
  
"And now we reach the Ghost War" the ghost said dully. "And, yes, what a war it was... The Founders had just built Hogwarts and were getting ready to face the enemy with the help of the Fal'sil... And then, then nothing happened"  
  
"Hell nothing happened" Harry muttered sleepily. "If nothing happened, then we wouldn't sleep this... learn this"  
  
"Or at least so it was thought... Roxana Chase found the White Stag which helped or was supposed to and then... the enemy appeared and nobody knows what happened... the enemy died..."  
  
Harry had had enough of this as he fell with his head on the desk and fell asleep...  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
"HARRY!" somebody screamed into his ear.  
  
"WHAT?" he cried back.  
  
"Finally, you're up" Ron said. "God, mate, I thought somebody stupefied you"  
  
"His name is Binns, Ron" Harry said. "So, what's up?"  
  
"Class over" the other replied. "You wouldn't believe the face the others made when Binns didn't even notice I was yelling at you to get up. So, they tried to shoot a notebook through him. Again, he didn't notice. So, guess what? We realized he had fallen asleep, too"  
  
Harry started laughing merrily.  
  
"That's a first" he said.  
  
"Yeah, tell me about it. Come on, Hermione and Amala have gone to the library and I said they shouldn't wait for us"  
  
"Good idea" Harry said. "I don't feel like staying there all day long. So, shall we stall?"  
  
"I'm with you" Ron replied.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Amala and Hermione were studying at the library when a shadow fell over their books.  
  
"Mrs. Wright, will you please come I have some things to discuss with you"  
  
"Of course, Professor Snape" Amala replied. "See you later, Herm"  
  
"Bye" the bushy haired girl replied.  
  
The two walked down the corridors and Severus said almost in a whisper to his girlfriend:  
  
"I want you to show me where you put the two stones"  
  
"Stoney" Amala corrected.  
  
"Sorry?" Snape said.  
  
"Stoney. The stones were called Stoney the First and Stoney the Second"  
  
"Who on Earth would call them Stoney?" Severus asked.  
  
"An elf or something like that" she replied.  
  
"An elf?!" Severus asked, raising an eyebrow. "What connection could elves possibly have with the Green Flame Torch?!"  
  
"The Torch was in the elven lands" she replied.  
  
"Aha. And where is it now?"  
  
"In the Gryffindor sixth year boy bedroom" she replied. "And it's safe since it hid itself from everybody but Harry."  
  
Severus nodded. They went quietly to his rooms and from there Amala lead the way, showing him the two stones, still in their places. Then, they returned to the Potion Master's Quarters.  
  
"There's one thing I still don't understand" Severus said after a short time of pondering. "Those places were hard to see even if you showed them to me. How did you find them?"  
  
"Um... Mark Strois showed to me" she replied. "Met him there..."  
  
"Mark Strois?!" Severus asked, eyes widened in surprise. "You've met Mark Strois?!"  
  
"Yes, when I first went through that passage" Amala replied. "What about him?"  
  
Severus sighed and then started to tell her.  
  
"The Lord of Darkness is one of the weirdest people to ever walk on Earth. He is said to be immortal and he is definitely mentioned in the stories about the Ghost War that the Founders fought... Have you heard of it? Evil disappeared in a weird way"  
  
"Sounds familiar" Amala replied, staring in his eyes.  
  
"Well, it is said that somehow the Lord helped the ones at war... And he still lives now, or so I think. Nobody's seen him since around 1950. Actually, he is said to have fallen in love with a woman around 1930 and that he hid his identity to start dating her... In about three years, they were together and she would have a child soon. It is said that then he told her how powerful he was and that he was immortal. She freaked out and kicked him out of her life and didn't let him back in. He insisted for a year and then moved back to the shadows where he had come from. When the child was born, she called him Mark Strois, forgetting the family name she wanted to give him. She lived for a year or so alone, then she married a man... Mark Strois was a special child. If he'd have been a wizard, he would have been powerful, but who knows what Jack, his father, was? So, Mark could easily do magic. The woman told her husband that her ex had been a very powerful wizard, because that was all she had understood."  
  
Severus took a deep breath.  
  
"The man understood and took care of the child as if he was his own. Meanwhile, Jack was doing his usual business and he got to contact a Seer who told him that his child, Mark, would die, but he needed to be trained until he was about twenty anyways. Jack understood and started watching his child more carefully. Because the Seer also told him that many would try to kill his child while he was young. He had known that for a while but he hadn't seen anything. Until one day when two idiots wanted to kill the child –who was about five then- and get a huge prize from the Dark side. They got to him and just as they were about to drive the knife through the sleeping child's heart, his father appeared and teleported them onto another planet. There, he hit them with very powerful Cruciatus curses numerous times. The Great Warriors –a category of people with powers greater than ours- all saw what he was doing. All of them, Dark or Light, stopped in the middle of duels and saw the two being tortured and supported physically by Jack in order not to lose their minds or die or even faint..."  
  
"Cruel" Amala muttered.  
  
"The first cruel thing he ever did, that's what they say... And the last. Next thing that happened, he summoned the Kings of the Dark and Light side and made them promise they would never allow a child be killed because of his parents. And they swore... Jack Strois was powerful enough to summon them against their will, who knew his power? Even the King of all things Dark, the one who guides the Dark Lord, You-Know-Who, had to agree. Then, all settled down. The two were killed by Jack and all went in a better way for young Mark: nobody dared touch him, so he lived a normal childhood. When he was eleven, Jack came to his house and it is said that Mark recognized as his father as soon as he crossed the door, although nobody had told him about his mother's husband not being his father. Jack took him into training and Mark became very powerful, as powerful as ones who had lived for thousands of years..."  
  
"How come he died?" Amala asked.  
  
"Oh, you know he died?" Severus replied. "Once, a group of powerful dark warriors surrounded him and managed to take him down. All expected a furious and cruel Jack, but he wasn't anywhere near. Just sad. This time, he hurt no one. And then it is said that Death herself became the Mistress of Mark Strois and he got power over life and death..."  
  
"Quite a story" Amala commented.  
  
"All that is said about Jack Strois is weird" Severus replied. "And many things are said about him. In fact, I heard he isn't even human... He just seems to be"  
  
"Then what is he?" Amala questioned.  
  
"He's not a vampire or a werewolf, out of what I understood, but what exactly he is, nobody knows"  
  
"So, he's a weird inhuman immortal guy?" Amala asked, trying to understand.  
  
"Yes" Severus replied.  
  
"And is he good or evil or..."  
  
"He is good, but he sometimes seems dark" Severus replied and sat on the couch next to his girlfriend.  
  
"Kind of like you, right?" Amala asked, raising her eyebrows.  
  
"No" the Potion Master replied, putting his hand over her shoulders. "He is much more powerful than I and... if you see him, you will understand. He does not seem evil, he seems more like a creature of the night. His voice is like black silk, in his eyes the Universe shines and he feels overall noble."  
  
"You speak as if you knew him" Amala said, looking at him curiously.  
  
"In a way, I do" Severus replied with a small sigh. "He is more than human, Amala, he seems to be a god..."  
  
"How did you meet him?" she asked gently. "Tell me"  
  
Severus looked deeply into her eyes and gave a small smile.  
  
"Do you really love me, Amy?" he asked gently and her breath stopped for a second. Amy? Since when did he call her 'Amy'?  
  
"Yes, Severus, I love you" she replied. "I wouldn't be here with you if I didn't. But why do you ask?"  
  
"Again it must be his doing... Not that I would complain."  
  
"Severus? I don't understand!" she said confused. "Who's doing?"  
  
Severus sighed and took her into his arms and leaned down on the couch, her on top of him, their faces toward the ceiling.  
  
"Promise me that what I shall say now remains between you and I"  
  
"I promise" she replied and he started talking in a pleasant voice.  
  
"As you probably know... or don't you, I don't know? I'm a 38 year-old man"  
  
Wow, that felt weird. Her boyfriend was 38 and she'd soon be only 17! A 21 year-old difference. Now, there was something to ponder. But not now.  
  
"And I am as you can see me now... I work for Albus Dumbledore and pretend to serve the Dark Lord. But when I was young, it almost was the other way around. I was your age and was seriously considering joining the Dark Lord's army. My parents were the worst parents you could get, so you could say I had what to avenge. And that was exactly what he promised: the opportunity to have my revenge on all who had hurt me in the past. Of course, I wanted to take it. So, there I was, getting ready to leave my house to go join the Dark Lord and just as I was exiting the yard, at sunset, a man joined me on the way. I wasn't the person to speak with people who started walking next to me just like that, so I waited. But when I couldn't stand it anymore, I turned to him and asked him what he wanted. That was the first time I actually looked at him..."  
  
Severus made a small pause and Amala let him like that for a few seconds before she asked:  
  
"How'd he look like?"  
  
"That's just it. I can't remember. But I remember the nobleness about him, the power that floated around him. I remember I was locked into his eyes. Those weren't eyes. I saw the Universe in them, all the stars, shining and the more I looked, the more I saw. But just as I was searching for our sun, he interrupted me from my gazing. He told me he knew of all that had happened to me and that he understood my hate for my parents. But he also told me that the Dark Lord was at least ten times worse than my parents. He told me that by joining him, I'd also be as bad as my parents. Ad he told me I could be better, that there was someone who could really help me without enslaving me and that by joining that man, I'd hurt my parents more than I would if I would torture them physically. That man was Albus Dumbledore"  
  
Severus made another pause and breathed in and out slowly before continuing.  
  
"I pretended to work for the Dark Lord, though and once we did get to hunt those two idiots. I didn't kill them, somebody else did, but as a last touch, I whispered to them before they died I was on the Light side. Jack Strois was right: they were indeed more hurt than they would have been otherwise. After that, I worked as a spy and never asked the Dark Lord for revenge again. Strois appeared to me on various occasions, but these meetings were to remain secret. Only I, Strois and Dumbledore knew about them at the time. Now, McGonagall knows, too. And so do you. He has made my life easier in some aspects and promised me that he will smooth my path here and there. And he also promised that he would help in ways I will not understand if my eyes aren't opened. But I haven't seen him in fifteen years"  
  
Severus stopped talking and Amala tried to suck all the information like a sponge. Which wasn't that easy. First, Mark Strois, now Jack Strois...  
  
"Perhaps you should go to bed, Amy" Severus said, using her shortened name again. "It's getting late"  
  
She turned in his arms and put a soft kiss on his lips. Then, she got up, bid him goodnight and left.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
Severus heard her close the door and got up slowly and went to his special cupboard which he opened with a special charm. He took out a vial with a purplish potion in it and muttered a spell on it. The bottle opened in two, revealing that it was empty and the potion was just an illusion. He took out of the vial a picture of a woman and kissed it gently and with respect.  
  
"Monica, I would need you right now... Old friend" he muttered. "I need your wisdom and power to see. I think I'm falling in love again."  
  
Of course he knew the picture of the woman wouldn't hear, but he wished it would. It was a Muggle picture of a beautiful, twenty five year-old woman with long black hair and kind look, dressed in Indian clothes and smiling at Severus. Ah, he wished she would be there to help him with her wise advice, but only God knew where she would be now. He couldn't say he had many friends, but he could say she was his best friend and the only one besides the people he had told Amala about, that knew about Jack Strois.  
  
He put the picture back and left for his bedroom.  
  
/*-/*-/*-/*-  
  
AN: Would you look at that! 33 pages in Arial 12 and I can't believe all I've fitted into this chapter! And I can't believe I actually finished, too. After all this time! So, guys, hope you liked it and come on, review! Tell me what you think! Flames? Welcomed!  
  
Thanks to:  
  
Aalikane: Thank you!  
  
The Red Dragons Order: Thank you... Don't know where I got that thing with Stoney the First from, but hey! It was a good idea. And thanks again!  
  
Harryp/charmedfreak: Thanks and I won't post any other reply until you get up to date with the reviewing. A lot of the replies would be useless anyway. Hope you'll understand! And thanks again! 


	30. The Mistress and the Elf Celebrations

Disclaimer: Own nothing.  
  
Dedication: to the Red Dragons Order!  
  
AN: A new chapter... And although the story is dedicated to Red, this particular chapter should be dedicated to Akvar, without whose weird ideas it would have come out completely different. And thanks to him for a few names here!  
  
Chapter 29: The Mistress and the Elf Celebrations  
  
"Don't be afraid to be weak,  
  
Don't feel proud to be strong,  
  
Just look into your heart, my friend,  
  
Let it be the return to yourself,  
  
The return to innocence!  
  
[...] Be yourself, don't hide,  
  
Just believe in destiny  
  
Don't care what people say  
  
Just follow your own way  
  
Don't give up to use the chance,  
  
To return to innocence!  
  
Don't care what people say  
  
Follow just your own way!  
  
Follow just your own way!  
  
Don't give up... Don't give up!  
  
The return to innocence!"  
  
Enigma –"Return to innocence"  
  
/-/-/-/-  
  
"Naranesh... Naranesh... Naranesh...." Jack muttered slowly as he watched the goddess in front of him walk gracefully to the small spring and take some water into her hands and drink. That woman was a goddess. Or that goddess was a woman, he wasn't quite sure, but she was divine and otherworldly nevertheless.  
  
"Yes, son of light?" she asked him with a smile on her lips.  
  
"Nothing" he replied. "But you... wow..."  
  
"Good thing my betrothed isn't here, then" she replied with a small chuckle. "I'm not sure how exactly he'd react to your last few words"  
  
"He'd laugh his head off and make me feel bad, probably" Jack replied. "And again, I feel like a kid when I'm next to you, graceful goddess"  
  
She smiled to him and said nothing. Instead, she sat down on the ground, her back to a tree and a few birds flew around her, landing on the ground near her and chirping happily when she petted them.  
  
"Can I stay with you forever? Please?" Jack asked like a child.  
  
"No, you cannot, young Navrad" she replied to him. "But for a while you are allowed to stay. Until I go to Hogwarts"  
  
"Please let it be next year or after two years or..."  
  
"In less than one month it shall be" she interrupted him. "More than that I cannot offer you"  
  
"Pity" Jack said. "Can I ask you a question, Mistress?"  
  
"You can ask as many as you like" she replied. "But be careful what you ask and be not surprised if some I shall not answer"  
  
"Right" he replied. "Are you human or..."  
  
"I am human" she replied. "Maybe a bit more powerful than some, maybe immortal, but human"  
  
"How old are you?" Jack asked, sitting on the grass next to her.  
  
"Asking a woman of her age! How disrespectful!" she said with a small laugh. "I am soon to be 2036"  
  
"Whoa" Jack replied.  
  
"Whoa indeed" she said and let out a chuckle. "But I have nowhere near the age of thine Master."  
  
"How old is he?"  
  
"A lot older than I, young Jack" she answered.  
  
"Of course, but how old exactly..."  
  
"It is a question I shall not answer" she replied. "His age reveals too much about him, for after an age it is possible to tell what and whom you are just by age. With me it is no secret, but you know as well as I that he won't reveal anything about him to anybody... except to me and to very few whom he completely trusts"  
  
"Doesn't he trust me?" Jack questioned, a bit hurt.  
  
"He trusts you completely, but you are not powerful enough to protect this piece of information enough... and even if you were, the knowledge of you knowing who he is would be revealed to the world. Many would hunt you. It is better for you to remain ignorant of this"  
  
"Right" Jack said, gazing into her eyes. "How did you get to be how you are?"  
  
"I? By the Grace of God, young one. He can offer all" she said with a charming smile.  
  
"Another one of those questions you won't answer" the man commented.  
  
"Ah, true. But my answer still stands"  
  
"Yeah, I can bet on that" he said. "So, could you tell me how to be like you?"  
  
"How to be like me?" she asked with a soft smile. "I doubt you would want to be like me... After all, which sane man wants to be like a woman and which sane woman would like to be like a man?"  
  
"I mean, reach your level, milady, not be like you!" Jack corrected himself.  
  
"Rather" she replied. "But be careful with words, they are powerful things..."  
  
She looked in the forest and spotted a dear come shyly towards her.  
  
"Come, sweet" she whispered to it and it caught some courage. "There, beautiful... How are you?"  
  
"How do you do that?" Jack asked admiringly.  
  
"If you are completely non-violent, others will be completely non-violent with you and animals and beasts will come sit near you" she answered him with a smile. "If you love them, they will seek your presence"  
  
"So, I can make animals come to me, too" Jack concluded.  
  
"No, no... Not make them. They will come by themselves" she said. "Tonight, the elves, naiads and dryads will come here". Then, she added with a chuckle: "You have been forewarned"  
  
"Ah, thank you. So, no sleep tonight" he said. "I don't mind. But why do they come?"  
  
"It is a very special night tonight... It is the night before the full moon; it is the night of harmony and beauty. It is a night that elves cherish, especially now, since it is so near the spring equinox."  
  
"Ah, the elves... Always in the stars!" Jack commented humorously.  
  
"You should see how they calculate the place where they celebrate some special days... All the complicated calculus and star watching... It's a science, I tell you"  
  
"Weird people" Jack muttered.  
  
"Weird, but pure and powerful and great" she said patiently. "After all, they are much more powerful than Muggles, you can't deny that, and many of them are more powerful than wizards"  
  
"I know" Jack said. "But I don't know why I like humans more"  
  
"Maybe because you are one?" she suggested.  
  
"Ah, right" he said with a nod. "That too"  
  
"But humans can be as great as elves... I know one human who is now half- elven, but in her heart she is still very human. The gift she received was to prove her just that"  
  
"Sania, right?" he asked.  
  
"Yes, her. Soon she will know she is human... But she has many elven qualities"  
  
"Tell me about it" he replied. "Milady Naranesh, I still feel like a kid in your presence"  
  
"Enjoy your childhood, then" she replied with a smile, petting the dear gently. "Mind if I put some music?"  
  
"No, no, not at all!" he quickly replied.  
  
She smiled and waved her hand carelessly and 'Enigma-Return to innocence' started playing.  
  
"This one's for you... Since you feel like a child"  
  
Jack smiled and let himself lye on the grass, next to the woman... no, goddess!  
  
/-/-/-/-  
  
"Do you know what day it is today?" Iris asked the class. "Can't remember"  
  
"Um... the 19th of March" Hermione replied.  
  
"Ah, thank..." she said and her head snapped up quickly. "Oh, dear! I forgot! The elves!"  
  
"Um, Professor?" Draco asked.  
  
"Right, right..." she said. "Gosh, I have to tell Albus I can't stay here tonight"  
  
"Professor, you still with us?" the blonde asked.  
  
"Yes, I'm still here, Mr. Malfoy" she said, turning her head towards him quickly. "Just my memory seems to have nearly betrayed me. I need to go to the elves tonight and I forgot. Oh, well, the class seems to be over anyway, so class dismissed"  
  
The students stared at her for a few seconds before actually getting up and leaving the class, their teacher searching madly for something. Before Harry exited the class –he was last in line- he heard her mutter 'here, floo, floo, floo, floo'.  
  
"I guess she wants to contact somebody" Harry told Hermione. HeHerm"She's currently searching for floo powder."  
  
"Yeah, she was acting weird, but I guess it's an elf meeting or something... Seems she has a good contact with the elves, doesn't it? Maybe that's why she was telling us so much about them the past few days."  
  
"Maybe she's friends with Sania" Amala suggested.  
  
"It's possible. Actually, how many elf-friends can there be around Hogwarts?" Ron said. "So, what do we do today?"  
  
"Study for N.E.W.T.S" Hermione said seriously and the three around her stopped in mid step.  
  
"What?!" Ron said outraged. "Study for N.E.W.T.S?!"  
  
"Heh, heh, just kidding, guys" Hermione said. "I can't believe you actually believed me!"  
  
"With you, it was a possibility for it to be true" Amala said shaking her head, a smirk on her lips. "So, Har, how and where is the Torch?"  
  
"In my bedroom" he replied. "It's hidden from everybody's view, just like Dumbledore suggested."  
  
"You know, I really like the way you majestically said 'oh, shit' this morning" Ron said snickering. "Until now I had no idea it was possible to say a majestic 'shit'."  
  
"I had my hand on the Torch!" Harry said. "You know what effect it has on me, don't you?!"  
  
"Yes, and then you nobly tripped on your own legs, another thing which I thought impossible" Ron added. "I mean, come on, how can you possibly trip on your legs and look like a noble?"  
  
"Beats me" Harry said. "But hey, seems like everything is possible."  
  
"I agree" Amala said. "It's a good thing we have the Torch and Severus said that the Order is pleased it is in your hands. Well, they're pleased someone on our side has it, but they're not quite pleased that you have it... Sirius apparently said that there is too much pressure on your head."  
  
"There is a lot of it" Harry replied. "But thank God I have the Torch... Imagine needing it and not having it"  
  
"Agree with you there, mate" Ron replied. "I say tonight we should try those new products the twins sent to us"  
  
"Are you nuts?" Amala asked. "I don't feel like losing my head or anything like it!"  
  
"Actually, I was thinking on testing them on first years" Ron said. "Not on ourselves"  
  
"Ron!" Hermione said threateningly.  
  
"Or on Slytherins..." he added seeing his girlfriend's look.  
  
"Rather" she said. "After all, we wouldn't want to hurt our own first years, now would we?"  
  
"I think Ron and I definitely have a bad influence on you, Hermione" Harry said.  
  
"I guess you do" she replied. "But don't worry, I think I like it"  
  
"Oh, no, the saint Granger is turning into a devil!" Draco commented, showing up. "So, what was this I heard... Weasley products on Slytherins? My, my, I don't think I'll allow that"  
  
"You're no fun, Draco" Amala said, shaking her head.  
  
"I won't allow it unless I'm in, of course..." he completed. "And watch out what you say, Wright, walls have ears and you're lucky I am familiar with the 'Sevvie' thingy"  
  
"Sevvie?" she asked, frowning.  
  
"Well, you wouldn't want me to shout out his name, would you? I think that's your job when you two sha..."  
  
Amala's eyes turned from calm to furious in less than a second as she slapped Draco with everything she had, leaving a red mark on his face.  
  
"Don't you dare, Malfoy" she threateningly said, furiously glaring at the blonde who was rubbing his cheek, in pain. People stared at them oddly, but she didn't care.  
  
"Never again" he replied. "God, what charm did you use to get yourself such strength?"  
  
"Ok, ok, break it up!" Ron said, pulling Draco away from Amala, while Hermione pulled Amala away from Draco. "No use to kill yourselves over House pride, you know!"  
  
"What the-?" both of them started, but they stopped in the middle of the question, seeing the mass of students around them. "But I assure you, Wright, the so-called 'Gryffindor courage' is actually 'Gryffindor unconsciousness!" Draco cried."  
  
"I'm surprised you can use such a long word!" Amala replied.  
  
"Can't believe it! Was that a sentence?" Draco sarcastically asked.  
  
"Yes, I believe you learnt about them yesterday, at kindergarten!" she replied.  
  
"Break it up, break it up" Ron said. "This is turning silly"  
  
"I'll give you silly, Weasel" Draco said. "Now let me go, may I remind you that it wasn't I who started this?"  
  
"Actually, you did" Amala said with a glare.  
  
"But I didn't jump at you to slap you, Gryffindork" Draco furiously said.  
  
"That's it!' Ron cried. "You're dead, Slimy-rin!"  
  
"What did you call me?" Draco asked, turning his head to face Ron as much as possible.  
  
"You know... Slytherin... Slimy-rin"  
  
"Mhm. you" Draco said.  
  
Ron turned as red as his ears and hit him against the cold wall of the corridor.  
  
"Stop it! Stop it!" Hermione said, letting go of Amala who stopped struggling to get to Draco and just stood there, watching them, eyebrows raised. "For goodness sake, where are we getting to?! Two prefects fighting on the school corridors. Five points from Slytherin and Gryffindor!"  
  
The two gaped at her.  
  
"You crazy, Granger?" Draco asked.  
  
"Yes. Now BREAK IT UP!"  
  
The two parted and glared at her.  
  
"Now, let's move it to our next class" she said turned her back on them. "This way!"  
  
They all nodded and followed her... through some empty corridors.  
  
"Ron, have you taken a shower this morning?" Amala asked casually.  
  
"Yes. Why?" he asked.  
  
"Five points to Gryffindor, then" she said with a smirk. "How about you, Draco?"  
  
"Yes, ma'am" he replied.  
  
"Five points to Slytherin, then" Hermione said. "But Draco, you should really cut it down on that type of jokes, you can easily see Amala gets outraged from nearly nothing and can slap you for them. Thank God I and Ron thought fast enough to get us out of that mess we were in."  
  
Amala made a face, but didn't reply.  
  
"Yeah, when I heard you going on with House pride I realized there was something bad going on there" Draco said. "And quick thinking at the end, too. I didn't know how to end the act"  
  
"Me neither" Ron said. "But I really was starting to get pissed off with you"  
  
"Let's all go to Hollywood" Harry proposed and the girls laughed.  
  
"Hollywood?" Draco asked.  
  
"What's Kali good?" Ron asked.  
  
"Hollywood. A famous place for movies and actors" Harry replied. "A Muggle place"  
  
The other boys shook their heads. Those Muggle things were really annoying sometimes.  
  
/-/-/-/-  
  
"Relax, Sirius" Iris said, holding his hand.  
  
"It's an elven party. Ring a bell? I'm not an elf!" he complained.  
  
"Relax, it's wonderful. Plus, you get to see Naranesh and not many get to see her in the way you will now"  
  
"How do I get to see her?" Sirius asked.  
  
"As the goddess she is. But she said that she might go to Hogwarts soon"  
  
"Right. Then why go and see her in advance?" the man asked and Iris smirked.  
  
"Why, I do believe you are scared, Mr. Black"  
  
"So, I'm nervous. Sue me!" he said. "I can't believe you're dragging me into this!"  
  
They had Apparated to the 'closest place to the clearing' as Iris had put it and now were moving on foot to the place where the celebration would take place. The forest was dark, but the nearly full moon was shinning up in the sky, lighting the whole place in silver. If Sirius hadn't been so nervous, he would have probably already felt the power of the 'goddess', as many called her, all around him. But maybe it was better this way, because when he entered the clearing he was completely amazed by all that there was around him and a huge shock always works for nervous people.  
  
Elves were dancing to some soft, pleasant music, laughing and talking happily and he frankly had no idea how he hadn't heard them before. Maybe there were silencing charms around the place.  
  
And suddenly, something struck him. Some not-quite-elven-or-human people were walking around, either in blue, water-like clothes or in brown, tree- like clothes...  
  
"Naiads and dryads!" he said in one breath.  
  
"Correct" Iris said. "Come meet Naranesh!"  
  
She dragged him to a place in the clearing where light seemed to come from. There, next to a somewhat silvery flamed torch, stood a tall, beautiful... no scratch that, extremely beautiful woman, dressed in a silver dress herself, a silver chain with a silver medallion on it on her forehead.  
  
"Ah, you are here!" she said, seeing them, her voice as wonderful as the one of angels. "Hello, Iris, my beautiful child"  
  
"Hello, Naranesh, lady of light" she replied cheerfully.  
  
"I see you've followed my advice"  
  
"Could it be any other way, Mistress?" she asked happily.  
  
"And hello to you, Sirius" the woman said, turning her head towards the man who felt odder by the second.  
  
"Um... hello... you know me?" he nervously asked.  
  
"Yes, I do" she answered him. "With your death came the birth of my child who knows not yet that she is my daughter"  
  
"Excuse me?" he said, frowning.  
  
"The one who has saved you is my daughter of heart... in other words, by saving you, she became my child and I, her mistress"  
  
"So, Amala's..."  
  
"Yes, you could say so" Naranesh replied, seeming to read his thoughts. "And I will ask Iris to guide her on her path"  
  
"My pleasure, milady" Iris replied with a small bow of head.  
  
"Is there anything you wish to ask me, Sirius?" Naranesh said, looking at him as if she could read his heart.  
  
"Yes, milady..." he replied, taking example from his girlfriend. "Jack Towers always talked about his Master, you say now you are Amala's Mistress... Who is my Master?"  
  
Naranesh smiled humorously.  
  
"I would tell you, Sirius, but you see, there is one problem... You don't have a Master"  
  
"What? But Towers said everybody had a Master when I asked him about the subject!" Sirius said with a frown.  
  
"Ah, but you see, the reason why you don't have a Master is that you have a Mistress" Naranesh replied, laughter in her eyes and in her voice.  
  
"A Mistress?!" Sirius asked. "But don't men have Masters and women Mistresses?"  
  
"Not necessarily" she replied. "Take my betrothed, for example. He has many disciples and they are both men and women. And I have male disciples, too"  
  
"So, who is she?" he asked. "You?"  
  
"Oh, no..." Naranesh said. "My children are on the path of pure light, as you can see Iris and Amala. When they will be powerful enough, they will be so pure and white that nothing will be able to harm them. So is my path, too... I cannot fight, for the grace over me is so great that all that could hurt me runs away before I even reach the place... Therefore, it is impossible for me to stay hidden or fight. And this is not your path"  
  
"So, I'm a fighter..." Sirius said.  
  
"Yes, more than one of us. You see, my betrothed, Jack's Master is one who helps fighters on their path... That is why Jack Towers is as he is"  
  
"But I thought I had a Mistress, so your husband couldn't possibly be..."  
  
"He isn't" she interrupted him. "But you need to understand that paths are many. And yours isn't Towers' either, although for a while it might seem so. Your Mistress is not here, so you will meet her after a very long time, if you will at all... If not, in another life you will meet her"  
  
"Another life?!" Sirius said a bit outraged. "After I die... again?"  
  
"Yes, Sirius, after you die again" she replied with a chuckle. "But you should be grateful that Death herself likes you"  
  
"Oh, you know of what happened"  
  
"Yes, I do" she replied. "But let me tell you something, Sirius. What you have seen is only a small side of Death. She isn't as cheerful as she seemed to be and she is definitely terrible when se wishes to be. But then she wished not to scare you. Death is much more than what you have seen. She is the Mistress of some and they know her both terrible and loving. She has a disciple who has died to serve her better and so he gained immortality. She can give that, if she desires to."  
  
"Immortal, you say?" Sirius asked. "How immortal?"  
  
"Well, he can't die at all, since he is already dead. You do the math" Naranesh said with the smile which Sirius understood was specific to her. "Now, children, go have a good time, for the elves are starting to dance in happiness... Join them, if you will"  
  
The human goddess nodded in goodbye and they bowed in front of her and went to the place where the elves danced gracefully. They joined the dance, feeling the harmony erupting from the music and a certain indescribable feeling that came from nowhere and everywhere. As Sirius thought some time afterwards, it was probably the whole 'harmony and beauty' thing the elves were celebrating.  
  
Sometime after midnight, Naranesh herself appeared in the middle of the celebration, holding a tall, white scepter in her hand.  
  
"I didn't know she uses one of those" Sirius said, staring at her.  
  
"Actually, she does" Iris replied. "She doesn't need a wand, they're too weak for her... so are scepters, in fact. But the scepter is a symbol of her power and status. She is one of the old witches, she is nearly a goddess..."  
  
Naranesh raised her scepter majestically and bowed her head slightly, white beams of light erupting from it and hitting everybody around. Sirius immediately felt a floating-like feeling and great happiness.  
  
"Call it a blessing" Iris said to him, grinning.  
  
After about half a minute, it stopped, but they could still feel the effects. Naranesh raised her head and lowered her scepter and made a sign for Iris and Sirius to follow, then made the same sign for others. Obediently, they did so and soon they found themselves in the same place where they had been before.  
  
There, there was a group of people who made Sirius feel very, very uncomfortable. There was a tall and beautiful elven woman dressed in blue which had a lot of herbs and small rocks and all kinds of things that only added to her charm attached to her clothes. Then, there was a tall and handsome elven man, sterner than the woman. Then, there was one of the naiads dressed in dark sea blue, with blue eyes and clothes that seemed to be made out of water. There also was a dryad, a beautiful woman that looked a lot like an oak, wearing dark brown and with hair that had leaves of the aforementioned tree in her hair. Next, there was a man who looked as if he were one of the old kings. Then, there was a young elven woman, dressed in brown and having a scythe-like weapon in her hand. Last, but not least, was his own girlfriend, looking much more powerful than usual. And of course, there was Naranesh herself. How did he, Sirius, end up here?  
  
"Welcome, ones of the council" Naranesh said, all of them forming a circle around her. "Most of you know each other, but some of you do not. And it is also true that not all the council is here now... But let me start by telling your names to the others"  
  
The goddess turned towards the naiad and dryad and said in a soft voice:  
  
"You will forgive me for not saying your names, but you know that many find it hard to remember them and even harder to say"  
  
"It is no problem" the naiad said. "Few elves and even fewer humans can speak our language"  
  
"Same on our side" the dryad said. "How many can sound like water or wind through branches?"  
  
Naranesh bowed deeply in front of them.  
  
"These two are two of the most important naiads and dryads in their lands... And further, we have Sania, a half-elven woman who once was a human"  
  
"Still am, still am" she murmured.  
  
"Iris Rose, belonging to the humans, daughter of mine"  
  
Iris made a small bow.  
  
"Sirius Black, again human, back from the dead with the grace of Death herself"  
  
Sirius wished he could've done something better than turn red and bow slightly.  
  
"Saren, the High Elven Priestess, her loyalties lie with Niamana, the goddess, mother of all, the part of God that is a woman"  
  
The beautiful elven woman dressed in blue smiled and bowed her head.  
  
"Soveran, the High Elven Priest, his loyalties lie with Shalar, the god, father of all, the part of God that is a man"  
  
Soveran bowed deeply, smiling slightly.  
  
"And last, but not least, stands in front of us the one called Eagle, of the humans"  
  
The guy who looked like a king bowed slightly, but didn't smile, instead looking concerned.  
  
"Some of you know why I called you. Some of you do not. But all of you are warriors, built to stand against the hits of the dark and this is what I ask of you now"  
  
Naranesh made a small pause before continuing in a completely different way.  
  
"A thousand years ago, on the plains of the school called Hogwarts came the Ghost War... Slytherin fell as we all know, leaving his House into darkness. And after the last battle –if we wish to call it so- the Fal'sil retreated to another world... A different world where time runs in different ways... Most of them died, but some of them remained, for there Death herself decided who shall live forward and who should die. And some Fal'sil remained... and through those the great king of the times when Hogwarts was built. Eagle, they called him, for his eyes saw better than a human's... Eagle for he flew in front of his people with braveness and wisdom. And that Eagle stands now in front of you, like he stood in front of his own a thousand years ago. Eagle, my king, you know the battle, but you know the price you shall pay, do you not?"  
  
Naranesh turned towards the old-looking guy who started speaking.  
  
"With great destinies come great prices and I am afraid I have both... My children have died, my children's children have also, my wife is dust in the wind... only I remained and even I now go... I came here to speak for one last time, before I go to sleep for eternity, for I have already slept with the grace of Death, my body hardly living, for 990 years. I speak now last in my life before I go... A lot of things have gone, and very few remained, but the Fal'sil now fall under different command and when they should they will fall in the hands of my heir. All of you will know her, for it is indeed a she, and descendant of mine and my wife's... Easy to tell by her name, she is. And I know she will rule them good."  
  
Eagle made a pause, looking at all the others.  
  
"Anything else you would want us to know? Think well, Eagle Eye, King of the Fal'sil" Naranesh said.  
  
"The gates of our land are hidden and elven nobles know where. But this is not all, no, it is not! I might be nothing but stardust now, but my belongings are not! I left great treasure in the Forbidden Forest –ah, I still remember the day when we had named it so!- and Naranesh knows where. I leave it to my heir, again. She is now richer than the Malfoys, if my knowledge is right"  
  
"It is, it is" Naranesh agreed.  
  
"And last, but not least, I will ask Naranesh to do me a favor..."  
  
Eagle turned to the goddess and took out a gold ring with one small diamond with a black something in the small diamond.  
  
"Give this to my heir, goddess... It this the Ring of the Fal'sil, the symbol of the great king and which will have the black sign of the dragon in it only when the one who wears it is the real sovereign of the Fal'sil and only with his or her agreement can the dragon be studied"  
  
Naranesh took the ring with a small bow of her head and the black thing in it disappeared, instead a white something appearing.  
  
"It changed to suit me and my soul" she said, looking at the ring. "I can see in it my dove, my sign..."  
  
"Indeed" Eagle said, his eyebrows arching a little. "I did not know it would do that"  
  
"It sometimes does" Naranesh said. "When the one who holds it is indeed light, with all his or her heart..."  
  
"With these said, I go sleep forever" Eagle said with a sigh. "My only sadness is that I will not get to see my heir."  
  
"You will see her soon" Naranesh said. "For the dead are sometimes graced by Death to see what they wish to in the world of the living... And you are one of the graced"  
  
Eagle's eyes widened in surprise and for a second it seemed that he wanted to ask something, but he gave up quickly, bowed deeply and turned his back on the group and went through the forest alone, pacing slowly and tiredly, a few shadows moving in his back... Soon they could see him no more.  
  
"There goes a great king" Naranesh said after a few minutes. "But he has been gone for one thousand years now. When wishing not to be a ghost, he was granted his wish and left on this earth until the reason of his staying here would disappear. What you have seen is a shadow, a shadow long dead which is only a ghost more material and yet less keen on life. He goes now to die and he knows that his presence in this council was not required... that is why he left now. But do not fill yourselves with sorrow and grief, for he goes to rest after a life that was too long."  
  
Sirius stared at Naranesh, a smile on her lips, the Ring of the Fal'sil on her finger. She actually seemed happy for something. Anyway, the whole scene had been weird. And again, what was he doing here?!  
  
"Now, we should decide what to do about the destiny of Harry Potter and Voldemort... About our destinies"  
  
Sirius's head snapped up and he looked into her eyes. Would he... Would he have something to do with...?  
  
"I answer now your question, Sirius. The one you didn't dare ask. You are here for your part is to help Harry directly. Young Harry Potter..."  
  
Sirius stopped his breath as she turned to the others.  
  
"Beloved ones, we are here to help our clause. And our representative in this battle was chosen by Voldemort himself. Harry Potter... Some of you know him, some of you do not. He now holds the Green flamed Torch and we need to help him resist in front of the one who calls himself the Dark Lord. As friends, we have the order of the Phoenix, we have Harry's friends... We have the angels that some of us can summon. We need to give him time to give ourselves time! Sania, you've met him, have you not?"  
  
"Yes, milady" she replied.  
  
"You will meet him again. And you will live near Hogwarts until your father will tell what to do next."  
  
"Yes", she said.  
  
"Saren"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"You will gather elves along with Soveran. Be ready to strike. Always. Sirius, you need to be near him. For moral support. You will also be, along with Iris, a link with the Order. For now, you must tell them that an attack upon Hogwarts will come soon and you must convince them to let Harry use the Torch at the right moment. It shan't be easy. In fact, it will be difficult, for your own heart won't want to let him do it. Can you manage?"  
  
Sirius looked at the goddess and felt a wave of confidence come over him.  
  
"Yes, madam. I can"  
  
"Very good" she said with a smile. "My dear dryad and naiad, guard the trees in this forest and the waters in the Hogwarts lake. There will be things you will have to take care of with great care. And I... I shall speak with my angels, I shall call Death herself... and go to Hogwarts soon, but I shall stay only short. I need to speak with the heir of the Fal'silian king. She might need some support herself. Jack Towers."  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"You will retreat in the shadows and come back only when your Master says you should. You will not help. You will not interfere. Not in this... But you will need to sabotage some of Voldemort's plans... on your own. Can you manage?"  
  
"Yes. I can" he replied.  
  
"Very good. I shall contact you all later... For now, I release you to go back to your own business. And thank you all"  
  
Naranesh bowed her head and they all retreated towards where they came from. Iris grabbed Sirius's hand and as they went towards the elven party, they were each stopped by a hand on their shoulders.  
  
"Oh, no, you two" a nice voice said. "You're coming with me"  
  
They turned to see Saren, the High Elven Priestess, smiling mischievously.  
  
"A friend of my friend's is my friend, even if he is in fact her boyfriend... Come, Sirius, Iris, tell me of your story and I shall tell you some of mine. But not here, I am usually searched for and I do not like being interrupted. Let's go to a tree I like, we can stay there in peace."  
  
Sirius was amazed by this, but Iris just smiled as they followed the beautiful woman elf walk deeper into a forest and climbing into a tree there, making sign for the two others to do so, too. They climbed, easier than Sirius thought he would do it, but more difficult than Saren and ended up on a tree branch which seemed comfortable and it was almost as if it had grown in the shape of some chairs...  
  
"I might not be very good with plants" the priestess said "but even I am good enough to convince a tree to grow differently than he intended. As you can see, I asked it to modify a little, so I could sit on it more comfortable... so tell me your story, tell me what is new and I shall tell you of the elven lands and the stories we hear there now"  
  
So they did... and it was a nice night. As Sirius got to discover, Iris and Saren were close and 'went a long way back', knowing a lot about each other. He also got to study the priestess better, the way she looked, the way she was... a true priestess, in his opinion, giving advice –especially to Sirius, Iris seemed to need none-, speaking a lot of 'the Great Goddess', as if she were real and there with them. But to his surprise, he found out that unlike human priests, she had a nice collection of 'exes', still searching for the right man. Surprising, indeed, who'd have thought? She also seemed to have no problem with the fact that Sirius was oblivious of her religion and didn't try to convert him but instead started speaking of Jesus and Christians... all this without it seeming unnatural. Without dragging him into religious conversations, she just let out a few words about a saint or another... and managed to sound perfectly natural. But she also spoke about completely non-related to the subject things easily and she seemed to know them as if she had been through them. Plus, she never said the word 'sin' the way Christian priests used it. Ok, so a few times she had said it ironically "oh, my, what a sin!" and as a part of an expression "It's not a sin to..." but never, ever did she blame Iris or him of any sin. Very good idea, he never stood for that. So, in other words, she was a perfect priestess, knowing a lot about everything that had to do with both life and religion... And Sirius couldn't be happier.  
  
/-/-/-/-  
  
"Wake up"  
  
"Two more minutes..."  
  
"Now, or we'll be late!"  
  
"One more minute..."  
  
"Already had it... Ten of them! Wake up, Harry!"  
  
Harry Potter opened his eyes to see Ron standing, in his school robes, next to his bed.  
  
"Tell them I'm sick... or skipping... or that you can't wake me up... or that I'm as lazy as a..."  
  
"Stop mumbling and wake up, Harry" Ron insisted. "It's Monday morning, you can't be late on Monday..."  
  
"You know, I think you're starting to scare me... You sound like Hermione" Harry said and Ron just shook his head.  
  
"Actually, what I wanted to say with that sentence is 'I can't believe I'm up and dressed and ready for school and you're still in bed! It's not fair, I tell you!... Couldn't you at least announce me of your decision so we could both skip?!"  
  
"Ah, you stopped sounding like Hermione there" Harry said and got up lazily.  
  
In about twenty minutes they were in the Great hall, Hermione eating while reading a book –nothing unusual-, Amala writing something on a piece of parchment.  
  
"What're you doing?" Ron asked her.  
  
"Writing a letter to my parents... I'm still trying to find something to deliver it, but hey, why not?... right?"  
  
"There's an ogre in the owlery" Hermione peacefully said.  
  
"A WHAT?!" Harry said. An ogre? What would an ogre be doing in Hogwarts? "I mean, weren't those dark creatures..."  
  
"Not that kind of an ogre, silly" Hermione said. "There are indeed some non- England students, so the school has ogre owls to help them deliver their letters"  
  
"Ogre owls?" Harry asked.  
  
"Yes. Owls Good for no Road Exhaustion. They don't grow tired easily. Nope" Hermione said and almost ducked back into her book when she seemed to remember something. "They're also called LIZARDS, but it's not such an every-day term, you know... I mean, everybody's used to calling them ogre owls, but still. Or were the LIZARDS of a different type? Nope, my mistake, two different kinds of owls..."  
  
"What does "lizard" stand for?" Harry asked.  
  
"Long, Intercontinental or Zappy Airline, Road or just any Distance. LIZARD"  
  
"Good to know" Harry said with a small nod of head showing he didn't even dream of beating Hermione in the 'encyclopedia' domain. 'So, Amala, what're you writing?"  
  
"Well, that everything's fine... a bit of knowledge of my school activity, nothing of the Torch, of course... And about my boyfriend. Mother has a right to know"  
  
"You'll just... tell her you're going out with Severus Snape?" Ron said after seeing nobody around was attentive to them.  
  
"No, silly" she replied. "Imagine if the letter got intercepted... But still, wouldn't tell them if mom in front of me now. They know him in a way or another, don't ask me how... But I would tell auntie Mona if she were around. She'd understand. No, no, I'll tell them I like a boy named Sev. Short from 'seven', the divine number"  
  
"Okay..." Ron said, watching her write. "'s that in Romanian? I can't get a word out of it"  
  
"Yep, it's in Romanian" she replied.  
  
"Is Amala a normal name there?" Harry asked.  
  
"No. I was named so after my grandma, but I never heard of anybody with my name there"  
  
Ron nodded and turned to his girlfriend, trying to convince her to let down the books. But, as usual, he was unsuccessful.  
  
Amala put down her feather and looked around.  
  
"Huh, we're not too many, now are we?" she asked slowly. "The others must have come earlier"  
  
"Well, we can stay here for about ten minutes... Frankly, I don't feel like waiting in front of the dungeons when Snape is still here" Harry said. "Now, if Ron would have let me stay in bed for another ten minutes..."  
  
Amala smiled wickedly a bit.  
  
"Say, while we wait, how about a bit of music? I miss that"  
  
"Music? How?" Ron asked.  
  
"The veni cantus, remember?" she asked. "Come on... Hermione, what d you think?"  
  
Hermione surprisingly snapped her books closed and nodded.  
  
"It would be a good idea. What song do you have in mind?"  
  
"Um... Dunno" she replied. "No, wait, I have an idea!"  
  
Amala took out her wand and said clearly:  
  
"Veni cantus"  
  
Harry tried to recognize the song. Hmm, it sounded familiar. Ah, the chorus was known, but he had no idea who sang the song or what it was called like. Well, it was probably called "I wanna be daylight in your eyes" or something like that... At least that was what the chorus said. Amala was enjoying herself and Hermione was smiling mischievously.  
  
"I wanna be daylight in your eyes, I wanna be sunlight only warmer, I wanna be daylight in your eyes, I wanna be love, only stronger" Amala sang happily, while scouting around at the teachers' table to see if anyone complained. Instead, Flitwick got up and said to McGonagall loudly, so that they could hear, too. Which, by the way, was the idea he had in mind.  
  
"Yes, Professor, this is what I was talking about just the other day! Magic for real in this school, students using it during free time also... And what a good idea, music! I say... 10 points to Gryffindor!"  
  
Amala smiled and looked at Severus Snape, smiling when she met his eyes. For a second there, Harry thought he recognized a shadow of a smile's shadow on the Potion Master's face, before he frowned and glared at Amala. He had an image to keep, didn't he?  
  
Dumbledore smiled jollily at them and seemed to sing along with the song. The old coot...  
  
Hermione looked at the Slytherin table where Draco had his eyebrows raised and was looking from Amala to Snape, expecting something. Luckily, the others thought he was expecting his Head of House to punish the girl. Which, of course, didn't happen. Explainable. He wouldn't want to cross Dumbledore, now would he?  
  
But when the song was over, everybody started going towards their classrooms. Which, in the sixth year Gryffindors' case was the dungeons.  
  
"Snape will kill you, Amala" Neville said. "He didn't seem too pleased with you playing that song in the Great Hall this morning"  
  
"Nah, he won't kill me..." she carelessly replied and many raised their eyebrows. "After all, Dumbledore agreed and Flitwick was on my side completely, so his hands are tied. Maybe he'll take a few points for various reasons or give me a detention, but nothing I can't fix"  
  
"There goes a brave little Gryffindor" Draco said, sniffing a bit with irony, while wiping an inexistent tear out of his eye while Crabbe and Goyle laughed their heads off. "Really, you Gryffindors jump face forward into everything"  
  
"Shut it, Malfoy" she replied without even bothering to seem upset. "So, what do you think we're doing today in Potions?"  
  
"Not much. Blow up a few cauldrons, lose some points, get Snape to yell at us, you know, that type of things" Ron said and the others started laughing. They didn't get to talk more since Severus entered the classroom in his usual bat-mode.  
  
"Are you in love, Mrs. Wright?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at Amala.  
  
'What's this, a trick question?!' she asked herself, but didn't get to say anything outside.  
  
"Detention today for daring to play a love song at breakfast. Emotional and sentimental business are not to be exposed in all the school, Mrs. Wright. That's why it's called personal business, although I doubt you know any English."  
  
Draco was laughing along with Crabbe and Goyle until something seemed to strike him and he got a sour look on his face. But nobody except Harry noticed that.  
  
"Well, at least, he didn't take any House points" Neville mumbled towards Harry.  
  
"And five points from Gryffindor since Mr. Longbottom decided he could comment on my words" Snape added and Neville sighed. So much for the good part. "I do hope the... musical moment is over, Mrs. Wright. We wouldn't want you to lose some points for singing in the classroom, now would we?"  
  
Amala nodded reluctantly and sat down, staring at the empty cauldron. And today's lesson was...  
  
"Today we will make an extremely difficult potion" Snape said. "Longbottom, you stand no chance."  
  
Neville frowned and glared at the Professor, but he didn't seem to care.  
  
"It is called the Dragon's Draught... Mainly because dragons are amongst the very few creatures who can drink such a thing. In case somebody of incredible idiocy or out of mistake drinks such a draught, he dies in extreme pain because the draught burns the person from the inside. However, in case one drinks it and is powerful enough to survive, he gets incredibly more accurate senses and power to contact the demons... or angels. It also makes one's eyes shine and a terrible force seems to surround the one who drank it. If drank constantly, it appears to have weird effects on the person. I tried once to swallow a bit out of a diluted potion of Dragon's Draught, but the effects were quite disastrous"  
  
Snape made a pause and looked at each student slowly.  
  
"However, I know a man who could drink it with no problem and he talked about different effects. You all know him, your ex-Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, Jack Towers. I once saw him drink it from a normal beer mug, saying it tasted good"  
  
Draco snickered and Snape turned towards him and frowned.  
  
"You think it is funny, Mr. Malfoy? It is not. He might be a Dragon Animagus, but still he drank it too easily. Blamed it, as usually, on his Master. He said that the effects were quite different from those we learned, since very few can drink it and those can indeed have the characteristics I've mentioned before, but not because of the drink, instead because of their own interior being. But he said it was rather a drink of those powerful that gave you more energy than a Pepper Up and which released a bit of your power. And it indeed made your eyes shine and it also connected you to some inner sources of power. But it was drank like people drink now alcoholic drinks, except it couldn't get you drunk, just made you feel warm and helped you control the element you were closer to. He also recommended I would stop teaching it, since it wasn't worthwhile. Unfortunately, the Education Department in the Ministry disagreed and now I must teach it."  
  
"Wow, we're making a drink we can't drink because we'd die" Ron said sarcastically towards Harry. Unfortunately Snape heard him.  
  
"Heard that, Mr. Weasley. And I am afraid I agree. I believe it is useless, but you might need it for the NEWTS."  
  
Ron gaped. Had Severus Snape agreed with him?  
  
"The ingredients are all herbs" Snape said bored. "You can see them on the blackboard. Get to work"  
  
They all started writing on parchment all the instructions and then got to work indeed, making the most useless difficult potion in existence.  
  
/-/-/-/-  
  
AN: Ah, another chapter... unfortunately, you had to wait for quite a while for it, for which I am sorry... But alas, my problems are going away soon and then I'll write more. If I get off my lazy but, that is. And something more: REVIEW! I really miss that...  
  
Thanks to:  
  
Babyjayy: Thanks  
  
The Red Dragons Order: I'm glad you like it!  
  
Other chaps: skillz: y the time you get here... ah, well, Mary sue is Mrs. Perfect-in-every-way. Check parodies for more information. 


	31. Revelations and Help

Disclaimer: as I said countless previous times –actually, countable, but don't feel like it right now- I OWN NOTHING!  
  
Dedication: Red, this story is for you! For all those who have no idea who Red is, check previous chapters or read next sentence: Red is the Red Dragons Order. Savvy? Good.  
  
Chapter 30: Revelations and Help  
  
It was April. Wonderful April. Harry, Ron and Ginny were training for the last Quiddich game of that year. The one against Ravenclaw. Well, at least it took Harry's mind off Voldemort.  
  
The Torch was safe, everything was peaceful. The fifth and seventh years were studying as much as they could for their exams... The birds were blooming and the flowers were flying... Especially when they were under the spells of some very nice Slytherin students who decided that the owls were too milk-happy, always throwing the letters into the milk at morning. And as for the flowers, the same Slytherin students decided to make the Herbology class more interesting.  
  
Yep. Harry had to wonder why it had all went so well until then –except for a few man-eating plants that were hungry and a few very nice bludgers he received during the Quiddich training, but alas, you can't have everything in life, now can you?-. All was normal and maybe too beautiful –except said man eating plants. Ugh-.  
  
Right now, the four sixth year Gryffindors that seemed to be nearly impossible to part –although Amala had made it much later than the others into the group- were eating dinner in the Great Hall.  
  
"I miss my parents" Amala said. "And auntie Mona! God, how I miss her! She's a really wonderful person. Unfortunately, I haven't seen her since last May, but hey! Hopefully I will see her soon"  
  
"Is she away from your house or something?" Harry asked.  
  
"Yeah, she travels a lot. She loves India, by the way and loves all the gods and goddesses there. She studies Tantra there, too. It's an oriental way of life, kind of like Yoga..."  
  
"Lucky you" Mark Evans said. 'I've nobody really cool in my family. My grandparents from my dad's side are unfortunately dead, but I still have my grandparents from my mom's side. They're wizards. My dad's a muggle, but he said he had a witch in the family before marrying mum. Some cousin of his, Lily. Seen some of her pictures. Beautiful woman, I'd probably have loved her. She had green eyes, just like yours, Harry! And she had an awful sister, Petunia."  
  
Harry gaped.  
  
"Pe-Petunia?" he stuttered.  
  
"Yeah. You know her?" he kid asked.  
  
"I do" Harry whispered. "Tell me, did she marry a muggle, Vernon Dursley?"  
  
"I think it was something like that... Why?"  
  
"Your aunt was Lily Potter" Harry said quietly. "My mum"  
  
The others around them stopped to look at the two cousins.  
  
"You had no idea you were related?!" Neville asked, surprised.  
  
"No, we didn't!" the two replied at the same time.  
  
"I can't believe it" Hermione muttered. "Oh, my..."  
  
Amala just stared at them, saying nothing. Ron was gaping and managed to gather all his power to say:  
  
"Bu 'ow?"  
  
"Seems like my mum had a cousin who got married and had Mark. I don't think Dumbledore knew."  
  
"I'll ask my dad what happened" Mark said. "I never thought I had you, of all people in my family"  
  
Harry nodded and Hermione got up.  
  
"Well, um, we should go study... Weird to know facts, but hey, it's a small world, right?"  
  
The two nodded and looked at each other weirdly before getting up and following the bushy-haired girl.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Amala had decided to make a stop at the dungeons before going to her bedroom. It wasn't really in her way, but hey! It was in the same building, right? She smiled at her weird logic and knocked carefully at the door of Severus's quarters.  
  
"Come in" she heard a voice say.  
  
She entered and saw her boyfriend sitting down on the couch, reading a book, wearing some black pants and a black blouse. He seemed a lot more comfortable than usual.  
  
"Amala!" he said, a small smile on his lips. "Great to see you again. Thought it was McGonagall and I nearly started giving you the speech of 'I don't really want to talk now'"  
  
"You shouldn't do that to me, you know that, Severus?" she asked and sat next to him. He seemed a lot more comfortable than usual.  
  
"Mhm" came the reply. "You do know it's a bit after curfew and you're not supposed to be here, right?"  
  
"Right! I knew I forgot something before crying out to the school that I was coming to see you"  
  
He snorted and let his book down –the title being, as Amala quickly noticed, "A Guide to the Most Difficult Potions" by Hannah Draught.  
  
"I thought you knew that book by heart?!" she asked.  
  
"Just forgot a few details about the Dragon's Draught. Some of the effects... I actually wrote on it what Jack said"  
  
"Jack Towers?"  
  
"Yes, him. But right now, I think I have a better thing to do."  
  
"And that would be..."  
  
"Talking to you" he replied. "Books are always there, but not the same can be said about a person"  
  
She smiled happily.  
  
"Well, that's definitely true! I can carry books around, but when school's over, I'll regret not having you"  
  
His face got suddenly darker.  
  
"What will you tell your parents?"  
  
She turned a bit red and pursed her lips.  
  
"I already told them that I'm going out with someone... a Slytherin boy called Sev. From the number Seven, which is a really lucky number, don't you think so?"  
  
"Sev, short from Seven?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Well, um, yeah. Do you mind?" she asked sheepishly.  
  
"No, but they will find out eventually of who I really am" he replied with a deep voice.  
  
"I can deal with that when it comes" she answered. "I'm not a Gryffindor for nothing"  
  
He smiled and slid a hand under her shoulders as she leaned gently on him.  
  
"I really am that lucky to have you" he muttered.  
  
"Severus, I had no idea you knew such lines" she amusedly said.  
  
"What can a man do?" he questioned back. "In front of such a beauty..."  
  
"There! Another line" she said, spotting it immediately.  
  
"Truth speaks your mouth and in your eyes the stars shine" he added amusedly.  
  
"Put such fine words to better use, I do believe you can come up with something better" Amala laughed.  
  
"Put words to better use? But do words not come from the mouth? Very well, I will put it to a better use" and kissed her tenderly.  
  
"Did you drink any of your potions lately?" Amala asked after they broke the kiss.  
  
"No, why?"  
  
"You're awfully relaxed and comfortable and all that"  
  
Severus just snorted.  
  
"Happens even without potions" he replied.  
  
As he was about to move back to her, there was a knock on the door and they both turned their heads towards the door.  
  
"Hide in my bedroom" he whispered quickly and she left with the easiness of a cat. When she was nowhere in sight, Severus replied, half taking off his shirt. "Come in!"  
  
As the person came in, he stood up and pretended to get dressed.  
  
"Severus?" said the female voice he knew all too well.  
  
"Minerva!" he replied. "Nice to see you again. Can't a man even dress in peace?"  
  
"I thought I heard voices" she said. "Were you with somebody?"  
  
"If I were with somebody, would I be getting dressed?"  
  
"So you really want me to answer that, Severus?" she asked and he rolled his eyes.  
  
"If I were with somebody, I would not answer the door right now! Plus, as you can see, I'm fully dressed and only had to take my blouse a second ago, and there's no sign on me whatsoever that I was going to..."  
  
"I get the point!" Minerva stopped him. "Yes, I can see you were pretty much alone here. I wanted to ask you about tonight's watch over the castle. I'm going to be in it. Do you wish to be?"  
  
"No, I really shouldn't be. After all I lost yesterday night with brewing that potion and didn't get much sleep."  
  
"That's what I thought" she said. "Just checking anyway. I'll have Filch to guard this corridor. Is that alright?"  
  
Severus replied with a calm-as-ever tone.  
  
"Yes, I'm alright with that."  
  
"Good. Goodnight, Severus"  
  
"Goodnight, Minerva"  
  
She left, shutting the door behind her in a simple manner. He locked it magically and went to his bedroom, also casting silencing spells. Not a good idea to be heard by Filch while talking to Amala.  
  
"You can't leave" he said. "Filch is watching over this corridor"  
  
"Heard that" she replied. "I thought you had some secret passages leading from here to God-knows-where? After all, I traveled through them, too"  
  
"The whole school is under guard. Even the Prefects are guarding. There's supposed to be a death eater attack soon and some of us are keeping on watch"  
  
"So, I'm stuck here with you, huh?" she asked.  
  
"Yes"  
  
"Well, who am I to complain?"  
  
Amala went to him, embraced him and kissed him. He smiled down to her in a very calm and relaxed way. He seemed like the wonderful version of the man she had fallen in love with and frankly, she didn't mind! She thought this might be a dream, so she would act like she would in a dream of the sort, too. But since she didn't really believe it, she decided to stay decent.  
  
"I should transfigure you some pijamas" he said quietly.  
  
"If you say so" she replied in a mock voice of 'don't you think I know you better than that?'  
  
"Too bad you turn 17 only this summer" Severus muttered in return, pretending to be speaking to himself.  
  
"Why?" she asked.  
  
"Did I say that out loud?" he wondered. "Must be more careful..."  
  
"What does it have to do with anything?" she asked, mock confused.  
  
"You're under age" he replied with a mischievous smile.  
  
"What?! No! Forget the damned rule!" she said devilishly, but not seriously. "Now, really, why obey it?"  
  
"Because I do not want to be accused of anything" Severus replied with the same mischievous smile.  
  
"Perhaps you're right" she said.  
  
He went to his own closet and picked out some pants and a blouse and transfigured them into pijamas.  
  
"I'll go change" she muttered and left for the bathroom, leaving Severus to shake his head.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
The night had been great... Well, in Amala's version, at least. She hadn't expected Severus to try anything since, well he had said it last night, too, she was under age.  
  
But that didn't stop them from their game. They played with words –and not only-, but really sleeping, after they decided it was late. She had hoped before, of course, that once he became her boyfriend, he would be a tad nicer, but she definitely hadn't expected this turn. Huh! Who'd have thought? Severus and fluff in the same sentence. He must have taken a potion. It was too fairy-tale-ish.  
  
And if Ron and Harry would just stop bothering her like that! So, they'd spent the night together, so what?! Didn't they know the whole age- problem?!  
  
"Oh, shut up" she mumbled.  
  
Hermione, on the other hand, was smiling to her like a real friend. She finally managed to shut the two up before they went to the classroom.  
  
"But, you know" she added "I must say one's mind goes to not so innocent things when you say you've spent the night with him"  
  
Amala just laughed and the four of them made it to their class in a very good mood. Although she did notice Severus nearly run out of the room, McGonagall asking him something sternly. She wished he wasn't in trouble.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
A dryad walked through her trees, watching them with a smile. To a human, she would seem to be a weird walking tree. Alas, nobody remembered the stories of the dryad nobles as truth, but as myth... Even wizards! They should know better... And thinking about myths, she should ask the naiad if the Loch ness Monster was real. She'd always wondered about that.  
  
She stretched her branches and looked up towards the night sky. She'd already been there for too long and was getting bored. Really, if Naranesh hadn't told her of the possible attack, she'd just leave. After all, the castle had been warded a long time ago by Jack Strois himself and who could cross his wards? And there were Dumbledore and Snape and McGonagall there. She sure as hell didn't believe there would be anything crazy enough to attack the castle just like that! Plus, all was so peaceful.  
  
So, there were quite a few wards around, she knew the centaurs –pesky, pesky creatures- would try to kill anyone who dared cross their forest. Of course, the elven party had been set up by Naranesh herself and therefore they might have not even known the elves were there. And the very nice giant spiders were definitely not to cross. Not to mention the weird other creatures in there, lost from the other worlds. She once had made it in another world herself and only realized it when a group of griffins walked by her. Only then did she ask the trees where she was and found out she made it in a very wild world, definitely nowhere near Hogwarts. Unpleasant, but not disastrous.  
  
Suddenly, she felt the trees telling her something and she looked at them for a few seconds before running as fast as the wind towards the Forbidden Forest.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
The naiad watched as the dryad ran with a huge speed through the trees and decided to follow. Well, she hadn't actually seen the dryad, but she saw a tree that was traveling with the speed of light. She got out of the lake and ran herself into the forest, right behind her friend, the lake behind her shining in the moonlight mysteriously.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
A raven was staring down at a very huge group of... whatevers that were approaching. Damn! What was up with the army?! And how dared they even get in close proximity to that place? Even he knew –and he was a raven, for crying out loud- that no sane dark creature should ever get close to the human nest that was so close. And a huge nest it was, also having a lot of little humans in it and a few bigger humans. And sometimes little humans learned to fly, but not too often. He wondered what they did when they didn't learn that. Ah, well, who was he to question humans?  
  
But why did these creatures come here? They were dark and ugly and wouldn't be able to get in the human nest. Even he felt, as a neutral being, that the nest was protected by nature itself. Oh, no, only light beings could enter. And those things definitely weren't light.  
  
As he thought of that, he could see with great surprise a running tree –'must be a tree goddess' he mused- and a beautiful blue thing that looked like water –'and a water goddess' he mused again-. They were running quickly –of course they couldn't see the army, he had been on a high branch, but they would see it soon-.  
  
He flew after the two, seeking their presence. Hmm, curiosity killed the cat, but did it kill the raven? Nope. Just the cat, thank God. So, he was safe. He could hear the sound of wind through the branches now, but strangely, there was no wind. Weird, he should feel it! But when the sound of water could be heard, he realized what was going on. The goddesses were talking! The wind replied again and the water said something before the water ran back and so did the tree. The raven felt the tree under him start to shake and move and flew up, not making any sound. He would not betray the goddesses!  
  
The trees moved, making a nice wall in front of the army and the crow waited to see them reach the tree wall. When they did, some howled in frustration and a bunch of black humans came out in front, shooting fire at the trees.  
  
The raven gave a loud cry and shot out of the tree. He would not end up fried! The trees under him started burning and he flew towards the human nest. There he could see what would be going on. And then he would fly home and that was that!  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
=By gum, look at those things! =/ the dryad said, amazed, to her friend.  
  
/=Tell me about it?= the other replied.  
  
=I'll keep them and put a wall of trees, you take care of the waters!=/  
  
/=Sure, and be careful!=  
  
The naiad ran towards the lake while the dryad made the trees around her gather closely.  
  
=Sorry to leave you to die, friends=/ she whispered to them as she ran. Behind her she could hear her beautiful trees saying back they were happy to die for her. She wasn't. She wished they wouldn't die... Because they would be burnt soon.  
  
She put a lot of obstacles on her path back and when she made it to the castle, she saw the naiad had already talked to Iris who was running towards the castle at full speed.  
  
/=The water is ready!= the naiad said. /=And so are the wizards! How're your trees?=  
  
=Fine. But many will die=/ she replied, in a choke. She could hear, although nobody else could, the cry of the burning trees. Her dear trees... Her beloved, beloved trees...  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
"ALBUS!" Iris cried as she entered the office. "We're being attacked!"  
  
"What?!" the Headmaster asked, meeting her eyes. "Severus, you go and alert the Professors, Minerva, lock the children in their common rooms!"  
  
"No! Don't lock them!" Iris said. "If we are attacked badly enough to be defeated, then they are surely doomed."  
  
"But if they are crazy enough to engage in battle..." Minerva said.  
  
"No, they won't! They surely won't engage in battle! Tell them to stay away, hidden, tell them we have a great plan which needs not to be ruined. Tell them that any interference besides the supernatural forces might be disastrous for our plans. And warn the Slytherins that whomever joins the dark side will suffer the consequences just like a Death Eater. Tell them that, Minerva. And add the fact that we are in advantage and need to keep it that way. And that nobody should help us, or the enemy or the results would be disastrous for both sides."  
  
Minerva just nodded and ran out the door, after Severus who had already done it a few seconds ago. Albus just looked at her for a second before he said:  
  
"You knew this would happen"  
  
"God, you know I did, Albus, that's why I said it in the last few Order meetings. Now, let's summon the Order and the Aurors."  
  
The two of them started summoning, Iris the Order and Albus the Aurors before they too rushed outside, where the battle had already begun.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Severus jumped in the middle of the battle, striking left and right like he always dreamed he would. But hell, the creatures attacking them were so numerous! There were about twenty giants, a lot of dark creatures of all kinds and more Death Eaters than he remembered seeing in the past meetings. And then, there was Voldemort himself, hitting everybody in his path, shooting Avada Kedavra's as if they were nothings. But trees and water jumped in his way, getting hit, making sure his spells didn't reach anybody who would die from them. The trees would lose their leaves and look as if winter had just come, but they would survive. And water made sure the spells were deflected. So, the Death Eaters started shooting fire, trying to evaporate the water and to burn the trees. If only there would be a tad more light... he could see clearly!  
  
In the middle of the trees there was a tree-woman which he easily recognized as a dryad. It seemed to be both hurt and furious, which was a bad thing for Voldemort. But she couldn't reach him, there were too many wizards and creatures between them.  
  
But even though the trees and the water helped, Severus knew they would lose. They were badly outnumbered and dark animals rushed out of the Forest so fast, he wondered where they came from. It seemed that for every creature they killed, there were another ten to replace it. And soon they would loose... It was a miracle nobody human had died yet, although burnt trees lay everywhere, dead, and the wizards were stupefied and petrified all over the battle field.  
  
Oh, curse all the creatures! And a giant had just stood on some of the trees, reducing them to branches and roots. The dryad let out a cry of pain and attacked the giant with everything she had, taking it down with her branches, shooting something that seemed like a wooden spear through its heart.  
  
"MY TREES!" she cried, in pain. "MY TREES, YOU IDIOT!"  
  
Voldemort laughed at her pain, not caring that he had lost one of his soldiers... he had more coming. He had dealt with the Hogwarts wards enough for them to allow his army on the school ground. But it took a lot out of him, he had to admit. Whoever had put the wards on the school had been much more powerful than him. And he couldn't last like that forever. Thank God the creatures were in, though! Their power was helping him. In fact, that was the only way to enter the castle and conquer it: make the wards shatter for a moment, enough for his army to enter. And then the army would help him unconsciously and the burden would be lifted off his shoulders... sort of. But he feared the moment he would have to open the castle doors.  
  
He then saw some flying things in the distance.  
  
"Well, DUMBLEDORE, seems that your PETTY ORDER has arrived!" he cried to the other wizard who glanced at the people on broomsticks.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Sirius glanced at the others around them and sped up his broomstick. He needed to get to Harry! He was supposed to, as the goddess had said, help him and allow him to use the Torch!  
  
"Hurry bloody up!" he muttered and sped even more. But when he got closer, he noticed all the dark creatures around the field and his heart shrank. He couldn't let Harry go out of the castle between all those animals! And there was Voldemort himself! Sirius gulped. Nope, no way in hell was he going to let Harry out, he'd rather die than that!... even if he died again.  
  
He made it in the middle of the field and started shooting spells everywhere. Iris rushed to him and cried over the sounds of the battle:  
  
"I can't get Minerva to allow Harry to use the Torch now! Help, Siri!"  
  
Sirius looked at her, horror-struck. He couldn't do that! HE COUDLN'T! But in the next moment, he realized that maybe Harry would be safer than any of them while he was carrying that blasted Torch and he would save many people from dieing. He could feel a powerful something telling him that was what he should do. He had felt something like that before... That thing was to be trusted!  
  
He rushed to Dumbledore and yelled at him, asking for Harry to save them. Dumbledore agreed and he rushed in the castle.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
"That's our cue!" Saren cried to the elves as they exited the Forest and jumped on their enemies. She had fought in human wars before and she would sure as hell fight again, never mind the fact that she was supposed to be loving and kind. But then again, all elves could fight and she was an elf! And so was Soveran, he was fighting like a lion in the sea of ogres. She was fighting with a vampire, herself.  
  
"No chance to defeat me, hun, I'm older than you!" he laughed. "I've been here since the 18 hundreds!"  
  
"I've been here for four thousand five hundred years!" she cried in return. "I do believe I'm older!"  
  
She then stabbed the creature in the heart and it turned to dust immediately.  
  
"God, I hate to kill" she told herself. "Seven hours until daylight, we're so doomed!"  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
"Harry!" Sirius cried, entering the Gryffindor common room after yelling at the Fat Lady for a while and threatening to vandalize her again.  
  
"Sirius?" the boy asked.  
  
"Get the Torch and get outside and do something!"  
  
Harry ran up the stairs and Hermione told him:  
  
"Sirius... he already tried, but he somehow didn't manage to take it away from where it was..."  
  
Sirius just stood there, dumbstruck.  
  
"He couldn't...?" he whispered, the whole common room staring at him. But soon there were running footsteps down the stairs to the dormitories and Harry came in the room carrying the Green Flame Torch.  
  
"I did it!" he said, proudly. "Let's go out, Sirius!"  
  
They left the common room in a hurry, Harry seeming very majestic to those who remained inside.  
  
"Whoa, mate. Whoa" Ron said to Neville. They had all been panicking until Sirius had come in and taken Harry with him. There had been no way to speak to anybody in that racket and now all seemed quiet. Plus, he just realized, nearly nobody there had seen Harry with the Torch before. And now he seemed even more majestic than usual.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
On the battle field, Severus Snape knew that they would lose soon. No matter how great their forces, the enemies had forces not known before to them.  
  
"BARTY CROUCH!" cried Voldemort. "Where is he?"  
  
"He has not come here, master" Lucius Malfoy replied. "He wasn't there at the meeting spot, either!"  
  
"WHAT!" Voldemort cried. "How couldn't he? I will punish him myself!"  
  
Severus heard that part of the conversation and understood that he wouldn't be able to play Barty Crouch anymore. 'Punishing' was over an hour long and he couldn't possibly drink Polyjuice under the Cruciatus spell. And only one mistake and poof! He would be dead.  
  
And then, Voldemort himself spotted him in the mass of fighting creatures.  
  
"Severus!" he cried, enraged. "Traitor! Avada..."  
  
The Potion Master realized he wouldn't be able to get out of the range of the spell in time, but tried to nevertheless.  
  
"Kedavra!"  
  
The spell flew at him and Severus's mind flew towards two people in that last second... Amala, who'd be in grief... and his Master... The one he hadn't seen in such a long time... Jack Strois.  
  
The spell hit him and he collapsed to the ground, hit badly...  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
"Severus!" Albus cried. "What have you done?!"  
  
"Killed him!" Voldemort laughed as the elder man rushed to the Potion Master's side.  
  
The Headmaster seemed to shine in his white robes, under the silvery moonlight. He bowed down over Severus's pale body and a tear fell down from his eyes as he looked at the dead face that had been so dear to him. The slightly open mouth seemed to say one last word, his opened eyes gazed into nothingness.  
  
"Severus..." he said slowly and painfully.  
  
Voldemort laughed cruelly as he watched the old man bowing over the traitor.  
  
"Face it, Dumbledore! He's dead and he will stay that way"  
  
"I don't think so!" said a voice. "Voldemort!"  
  
Nearly everybody turned their heads to the newcomer. He was tall, dressed in black and had two dark wings on his back. Oh, yeah, and he looked like a god.  
  
"How dare you?!" the Dark Lord cried.  
  
"I dare. I am Mark Strois, Death's own messenger. And I came to remind you your little pact with her twenty years ago!"  
  
Voldemort paled seriously, although nobody had thought it would be possible.  
  
"Severus Snape will come back to life now... and so will Nymphadora Tonks!"  
  
"What?!" Voldemort said. "NO! She said ONE life I must spare! ONE, not two!"  
  
"But she said that for a secret, you would spear two lives"  
  
Albus looked around him and saw the dead body of Tonks lying down. His heart sank but then lifted back as he saw the very pale Dark Lord in front of him.  
  
"What secret would be so great I should spear both lives?" he questioned loudly.  
  
"There is something you do not know of Crouch" Mark said.  
  
"I know all about him, you fool! He is my only faithful servant!" Voldemort said.  
  
"I know. But he is also soulless at the moment" Mark said with a smirk. "The man you have in your service is not Crouch"  
  
"Who is he, then?" Voldemort asked, feeling like a man in a cage.  
  
"Severus Snape" Mark replied, his eyes narrowing.  
  
"NOOO!" Voldemort cried and Mark went to Severus and touched him right above his heart, after that doing the same with Tonks.  
  
"Too late now..." Mark said and smiled wickedly at the Dark Lord. "Your doom awaits, Tom Marvolo Riddle! Here it comes, floating dangerously in a green light"  
  
With that, Mark turned his back on the Dark Lord and walked away, disappearing in darkness. Behind him, Severus and Tonks woke back to life.  
  
Everybody stared at the weird scene and at the two dead waking up.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
"I hope you know what you're doing, Mistress" Mark muttered.  
  
"You doubt me?"  
  
Mark looked at the beautiful woman standing in front of him. Again, she had appeared out of nowhere. He really loved her, but sometimes it got annoying when she did that.  
  
"No. I just hope all will come out right in the end" he replied, lifting up his chin.  
  
"You do doubt me" she concluded, a mischievous smile on her face.  
  
"No..." he tried to argue, but didn't manage as she interrupted him.  
  
"If you wouldn't, you wouldn't hope for it to come out right. It will. No human or human like creature will die in this battle...anymore" she said with a mischievous smile which made him wonder sometimes what exactly she controlled and which she did not.  
  
"How do you know?" he asked and she laughed.  
  
"I am Death!" she replied simply  
  
"But what if one kills another..."  
  
"They won't. At this very moment, Harry Potter is doing the very thing for which this battle is fought! He will prove the full forces of both light and dark side. And you know who will win..."  
  
"I do!" Mark muttered. "I do... but how many will die? It would be horrible for some to die so young!"  
  
"I decide who stays and who goes. I am the Goddess of Time and therefore of Destruction! You know that even though I say I am Death, you know that I am not... do you not?"  
  
"Death and destruction two of your faces, Mistress" he replied, wondering why she was reminding him that. "I trust you completely and I beg for you to forgive me for not trusting you for a moment. And would it be alright if I begged you to spare the lives of those on the field?"  
  
"It is alright, but I already told you I would. None must die now. It is not yet their time! But when it shall come, be sure I will take them. I do not spare uselessly, Mark. But I do not kill uselessly, either. I do all when it is necessary and I will always do everything at the right time and I will seem to be Death, but I am not only Death, but also transformation, which is another face of Death. You should know that by now"  
  
"I know" Mark said. It was a bit complicated, but he had understood it a long time ago. "But then... may I ask... how many will be transformed?"  
  
"Tonight? Many. I will do now what I would do in years. I am Time itself, the Time that kills, that devours everything and they call me Death. They are right... and I will kill many of their weaknesses tonight. But fear not, all shall go to right and none shall lose their physical bodies in this night."  
  
"How will you act?" Mark questioned. Was he pushing it too far? But even if he was, she was patience itself and wouldn't make him feel bad because of it. And it seemed that he hadn't pushed it too far with his deadly curiosity.  
  
"I will be there in blackness and I will use the Torch with the Green Flame. I will act through it. And then another will take my place and they will think I wasn't even there. But I will be there more tonight than in any other time they could think of."  
  
She smiled at him and her teeth started growing incredibly long and sharp, her lips curled in an ironic smile and her beautiful body was surrounded by a black aura. Instead of the beautiful kind woman before, she was frightening, her teeth seeming to be ready to destroy everything in her path, the smile saying what she thought of the world. In one of her hands appeared a long sword that only added to the effect. Mark stared at her full of devotion, knowing that behind the terrible mask there was more love than anyone could ever think. He knew that she would do only what would be good to the ones on the battle field, but that didn't stop him from shivering at the mere sight of the mesmerizing goddess before him. Her body became black and more beautiful than it had already been as she became the image of Death. The ones on the battle field would lose many of their weaknesses, but it would hurt a lot... just like taking out a rotten tooth.  
  
"Fools and only fools think they can escape me tonight!"  
  
/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Back on the battlefield, the atmosphere started changing again, everybody snapped out of stupor and started attacking their enemies with viciousness. And in that precise moment appeared Harry with the Torch.  
  
"What do I do now?" he asked Sirius.  
  
"Don't know, you're the bearer!" Sirius replied.  
  
Harry looked around the battlefield and spotted the one man he deeply hated. Voldemort. He walked past Sirius in full storming-mode, everybody stepping away from his sight, friend or not.  
  
"Harry? Harry! HARRY!" his Godfather cried desperately, but got no response. Instead, the teen rushed to the dark wizard and pointed his wand at him, holding the Torch in the other.  
  
"You will hurt nobody now!" he cried loud enough for everybody to hear.  
  
"Too late, Potter!" he spat. "This time, one of us will die!"  
  
"I agree, Voldemort" Harry said, his eyes glittering.  
  
"What? No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!" said Iris, nobody hearing her, though. "This is sooo wrong"  
  
Both Voldemort and Harry drew their wands and Voldemort had to admit he was in disadvantage. Blasted Torch! It made Potter too powerful!  
  
"Crucio!" he cried, as a beginning, but Harry got out of the way.  
  
"Expalliarmus!" Harry cried, but Voldemort ducked.  
  
"Avada Kedavra!"  
  
"Stupefy!"  
  
"Crucio!"  
  
"Expalliarmus!"  
  
"Impedimenta!"  
  
"Reducto!"  
  
Sirius watched for a few minutes as the two wizards shot spells from one another, neither losing, nor winning, both moving terribly fast. Well, he would have stayed to watch for a longer while, but he was attacked by a blasted lethifold. What a time!  
  
Everybody fought viciously, all knowing, however, that the victory would be determined by the winner of the duel between Voldemort and Harry Potter. But it wouldn't hurt if they still fought for their lives, did it?  
  
Sirius blasted the animal into pieces and jumped against a Death Eater who seemed to be hitting him wit all he had. Except the Avada Kedavra, that is. He somehow managed to also fall under the Cruciatus and he screamed so loud Iris could hear him from the other side of the battlefield and started making her way towards him, passing over the petrified body of Sprout and the stupefied Nott. But when she made it to Sirius, he had already taken care of the pesky wizard and was fighting with a few vampires. So help was welcomed anyway.  
  
And then, there was a cry... and all went green and then black.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Harry looked angrily at the man in front of him and shouted at the top of his lunges, the most unforgivable of the unforgivable curses:  
  
"AVADA KEDAVRA!"  
  
The green flame of the Torch melted with his spell, however and instead of hitting only his opponent, the spell seemed to grow in size and to hit everything around it... including Harry.  
  
His vision blurred and he fell into darkness...  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
In the dungeons, Draco felt power rush towards the common room and cried desperately to his fellow Slytherins:  
  
"RUN!"  
  
But before he could do anything, a green wave hit him fully.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
In the Gryffindor common room, Amala opened her eyes from the silent prayer she was murmuring and let out a sigh of pain and fear. Then, something powerful and green hit her fully and she fell to the floor, unaware that the same had happened everywhere in the castle, portraits and ghosts being hit themselves and students collapsing on the floors. In Hogsmeade, the people who hadn't gone in the battle to help saw the green wave come to them and also fell hit by it.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
The next morning, near dawn, the sun rose to see many people sprawled on the grounds and floors of Hogwarts. He let his sunbeams hit them, especially one of them, a boy he knew too well, awaking him first.  
  
Harry opened his eyes to see the dawning sun arise over the castle and its grounds. Somewhere further, he could see Voldemort himself laying on the ground, still unconscious. He could do something... put an end to the war now... this moment! But he knew it wasn't yet the time. That weird creature that had appeared in his sleep had told him so and he knew it wouldn't be good to mess with her. And for a second there, she had let him see... see something... but he couldn't remember what... He remembered saying 'oh' and... that was all. But he knew that killing Voldemort now wasn't in the plan. Something else had to happen. And besides, he couldn't have cast the spell there even if he wanted to. He couldn't feel his limbs...  
  
But he somehow managed to get up and he saw that all the creatures around him were in deep sleep. The Torch was still standing next to him.  
  
And then, they all started to wake up in the same time, scaring him. The vampires, protected in some bubbly-things, disappeared first, followed by the creatures, the Death Eaters and finally Voldemort himself. Students ran out of the castle, staring at what was outside.  
  
And over them came a great light... In the dawn, another sun approached them. A pure white sun, but which didn't harm their eyes. As it approached, they realized that around it white birds were flying in circles, other color birds approaching it also and starting to circle like crazy.  
  
Then, looking below it, for the bright orb floated above ground at about five meters, they could see animals running in circles, approaching in a way that proved they were happier than ever before.  
  
And music started singing in tunes they couldn't understand, it seemed that the wind and water, as well as the birds and animals chirped and made noises in the same time, reuniting with flute-like sounds nobody could tell where they had come from. The colors seemed much brighter than usual all around them, but the brightness didn't hurt their eyes, but made them feel wonderful.  
  
Sirius turned into his dog form and ran towards the orb happily. The elves started singing themselves, laughing in the same time. Harry held the Torch majestically, but he felt his knees were starting to give up on him. Most of the students were awed and Amala let herself fall on her knees, smiling happily.  
  
"Goddess..." she muttered, realizing who the orb was.  
  
Some of the elder Slytherins were uncomfortable and seemed to want to run away, but not managing to. Severus seemed to be very comfortable and a happy smile appeared on his face as the orb made it in the middle of their gathering and landed gracefully, turning into a very beautiful woman.  
  
"Good morning, Hogwarts, school of the old with the heart of those young" she greeted. "I am Naranesh, Daughter of the Goddess Niamana. I come to you today"  
  
They all greeted her back in their own ways. Dumbledore smiled and bowed his head, Sirius –now again human- bowed to the ground, Amala made a weird bow herself, it was like one of those Indian bows. Most of the Hufflepuffs said 'hello' back, the Slytherins tried to say the most elaborate and impressive hellos and do the most impossible bows and some girls even took off their jewelry and went in front of the goddess and put them down on the ground, as an offering. The Ravenclaws said hello and then sent a representative with all their gifts. The Gryffindors went and sat in front of her. The elves sang and danced in joy, speaking in their language. Iris Rose tried to translate, but she didn't manage to, all that Harry understood was that they were happy to see Naranesh as Niamana herself, but that they weren't surprised to see her that way. A beautiful hippogriff landed next to her and she touched it gently on its beak.  
  
"I come here to give a warning: the war has begun where it ended a thousand years ago, as it was supposed to happen. I am afraid that in the next battles, you will have no such grace as you did last night and I am afraid that in those battles, some will die... But this night, you have shown the forces that shall be fighting. The dark side will have dark creatures, tones of them and death eaters... but you, you are so much more powerful! It was said that the forces battling in the first battle will be there in the next battles... so I made sure a magical creature would be fighting on your side, too. This hippogriff has been here last night in the last few moments. It is here to show that creatures, both who walk and fly, who are proud and who should be treated as equals, but which can serve a wizard will help. They will be here, fighting at your side! And there will be royal blood, which was here through the bearer of the Green Flame Torch, for it nobles those who carry it... But that royal blood shall not be the one of Harry Potter, but of a different person. A descendant of kings of the old! She is heir of Eagle, king of the Fal'sil and his wife, Roxana Chase, the one who chased after the White Stag!"  
  
"Chase?!" Jane Chase let out a breath.  
  
"Yes, young one" she said, slowly. "Your ancestor"  
  
Jane gaped and seemed to pale a bit.  
  
"Come! Eagle, the great king, has left you his throne. He said that it is finally time for blood of his blood to climb on the throne and rule again."  
  
"He said it? He couldn't have..." she whispered. "I have heard of his story, though I never understood why it had been so popular with my grandmother. It happened a thousand years ago, did it not? Maybe he was wrong, I cannot be a queen. Maybe my mother..."  
  
"Your mother forgot who she is" Naranesh said kindly. "She is, like many of her age, in complete denial as to who she is. As you might remember, she chased an elf around the world, but it wasn't for the noble reasons your ancestors had. She chased him in order for him to tell her the recipe for a potion."  
  
Jane let out a sound of surprise... She had never known the real reason for the chase... Her mother had always told her she had chased him for wisdom. She had assumed it had been like in the case of the first Chase. And instead of chasing wisdom...  
  
"Do not misjudge her" Naranesh added slowly. "She did what she thought right. Her choice of chase came not from egocentrism, but from the desire from wisdom which she did not understand and which she covered with too much dust to see clearly again. So she chased knowledge. But you... you are still young and can see clearly. You shall be helped, of course. And as for Eagle, he was so sorry he could not see you. But it was time for him to rest with the rest of those who he loved. He had already fallen in an enchanted sleep to prevent him from his death, he could not push it anymore. All he could do was pass on everything he had... to you! And he died then. It was my eyes who saw him fall, although the others could not."  
  
Jane just gaped, trying to suck in all the information. Which wasn't easy. And Naranesh understood and said nothing for a few minutes as the girl breathed hard. After that, she added in the same kind manner:  
  
"He has also left you a great fortune. You are now very rich, much richer now even than the Malfoys."  
  
Jane said nothing, two tears going down her cheeks... After a few minutes, she spoke again.  
  
"I need to think" she whispered. "Could I... Do you mind if I...?"  
  
"Go right ahead" the goddess said kindly and Jane turned her back to everybody and entered the castle.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
After the first few words, Naranesh had made it clear she wanted to stay for a few days before leaving. She was of course offered a bedroom in the castle and she accepted. The animals had lied down on the school grounds and the teachers and students were chatting excitedly. Naranesh had told them quite a few things about the war, speaking of a great shadow that had fallen over the Slytherin heir and that needed to be lifted. Or something like that, her words were not at all clear. But she had mentioned a deadly war that was about to fall over the worlds. She had also said, to everybody's curiosity: "and the daughter of light and the daughter of darkness shall see the magic that lies within. And Death shall bite the ones who seem to help the royal, but only pull it back. And colors will switch and white shall seem black and black shall seem white until the two sons of the prophecy shall vanquish either one or both."  
  
And hell if Harry understood anything. However, nobody else –not even Hermione- didn't understand the words of the goddess, so he cheered up.  
  
And only at dinner did Jane appear back, a bit tired, but somewhat more happy.  
  
"You have chosen right" Naranesh said with a smile.  
  
Amala sat next to Harry, Hermione and Ron again, after walking around the goddess all day long. She seemed very happy and quite fresh, although she had jumped around all day.  
  
To Harry, all seemed to be a fairy tale. One that would end good.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
AN: Finished another chap! And, to leave you a cliff-hanger, the first sentence in the next chapter is... :::drums::: "It did not end good"  
  
So, guys, a nice ickle question: why don't you review?! THREAT: IF YOU DON'T WRITE ANYTHING, I'LL BE E-MAILING THIS STORY TO THE RED DRAGONS ORDER AND WON'T BE POSTING ANYTHING ANYMORE! 


	32. Masters, Couples and Plans

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.  
  
Claimer: I own this story.  
  
Dedication: to the Red Dragons Order!  
  
Chapter 31:Masters, Couples and Plans  
  
It did not end good. Naranesh had decided to leave the school and one night she had disappeared without a trace. The same night Harry had a 'Voldemort dream'  
  
Harry had been inside Voldemort and he was terribly angry. He hit with Crucio most of his Death Eaters, called them incompetents and idiots... But beneath the anger, he was afraid, a cold fear that seemed to nearly suffocate him.  
  
He dismissed his followers and lied back on a chair, breathing heavily. He had fallen under the power of the Torch... He had been defeated... And when he had fallen, he had felt that Avada Kedavra he had cast fifteen years ago... He nearly died and he had felt death hanging over him, just an inch from falling.  
  
That appearance of Death's angel did not mean anything good. It meant Death had not forgotten him. He would be killed.  
  
So he decided he would call upon all the forces he could gather and open the realms which he had opened that damned night he had attacked Hogwarts and even more. He would get his giants back. And hell, he would destroy the Torch!!! Without the Torch, Potter would have died.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-  
  
In Hogwarts, said Harry Potter awoke, still feeling furious about the Torch and 'Potter'. Before he realized that 'Potter' was exactly himself and the Torch was the way he had survived.  
  
"I hate you" he muttered to his sworn enemy. He could nearly hear a part of him, the one that thought he was Voldemort, reply: "The feeling is mutual, Potter"  
  
He pulled a set of robes over himself and left for the bathroom to wash his face. A dream... He hadn't had them lately...  
  
The cold water spread all over his face and he felt he needed a walk to help him cool down. Or a flight... Definitely a flight would be better.  
  
He went to his dorm and took his broomstick and left for the entrance of the castle, covered in his Invisibility Cloak. He passed Filch without him noticing him and he also passed Snape. He still couldn't get what Amala saw in that man.  
  
At the entrance of the castle, he mounted his broomstick and flew, his Cloak in a huge pocket inside his robes. The wind against his face was a true blessing and he rose above the castle, looking at the beautiful round moon.  
  
He then went lower, just a few meters above the ground and flew towards Hagrid's hut, then taking a corner to the right and flying near the Forbidden Forest.  
  
Just as he was about to go towards the castle again, he saw a huge winged lion ten meters into the Forest. He stopped on his broomstick and took out his wand. The lion made a few steps slowly and then, to his huge surprise, turned into a cloaked and hooded human being.  
  
"Stop or I'll shoot!" Harry said, but the man didn't stop.  
  
"You want to shoot me, Harry?" he asked, going towards him.  
  
He could feel something extremely familiar in that voice. It was pleasant and good and powerful, just like one of a great king's.  
  
"Towers' Master" Harry muttered.  
  
"Indeed" he replied.  
  
He came out of the Forest, his hood hiding his face.  
  
"What are you doing here?" he asked and mentally slapped himself. Was that the way to talk to a king?  
  
"Waiting for you" he replied and Harry could feel calm eyes looking at him, although the hood didn't allow Harry to see anything.  
  
"Why?" he asked, but the man didn't reply. Instead, he looked up to the moon and sighed. "Why were you waiting for me?" Harry insisted.  
  
"Would you believe me if I told you?" the man asked.  
  
"Perhaps" Harry replied, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"I just dropped by to encourage you" the man replied and lifted his chin so that a smile could be seen in the moonlight.  
  
"Encourage me?" Harry asked, puzzled.  
  
"Yes, well, you don't seem so keen on life right now"  
  
Harry could see that the man had become very informal and friendly.  
  
"That's my business" he replied cautiously and the man smiled a bit more.  
  
"Actually, it's not just your business" he replied. "There are some who care about you, you know"  
  
"And I guess you're one of them, huh?" the Gryffindor asked, suddenly tired.  
  
"Actually, I was talking about your friends. Hermione... Ron... Amala" the man said carelessly. "Neville, Ginny, Luna, Mark, Jane, Draco"  
  
"You seem to know them pretty well" Harry said and dismounted his broom. Maybe it wasn't wise, but something encouraged him to do it. Maybe the fact that he had met the man before in dreams. But for safety, he held his wand tighter.  
  
"I know many things. Like the fact that you are now holding to your wand as if your life depended on it" he said with a chuckle. "Don't worry. I don't mind"  
  
Harry just stared at him curiously before he asked again:  
  
"Why are you here?"  
  
"I've told you: to encourage you. And to tell you to relax and resist. Good old Voldemort will be giving you a headache, you know."  
  
"That's encouraging" Harry muttered darkly and the man laughed.  
  
"No, the encouragement is that for a while, he'll only do that; give you a headache. But he won't hurt anybody for a while. He will try to get the Torch."  
  
"I have the Torch, so he'll come to me" Harry said slowly.  
  
"Ah, yes, but he fears you like a coyote fears a lion. With the Torch and with Dumbledore, you'll have him dead for sure. So, you must resist the headaches for a while, before he dares to attack. Relax for a while, enjoy your life. Go out on dates, if you wish."  
  
Harry blushed a little. Who was the man to tell him when to date? Right now, he seemed to smirk. So, he was toying with him!  
  
"But one more thing" the man said. "Don't fly this close to the Forest. It is not safe and some animals are quicker than even a Firebolt."  
  
"Yes, sir" Harry said. The man bowed his head slightly in a quiet goodbye and Harry followed his lead. Then, the king turned his back on him with a graceful, feline-ish move and went into the Forest.  
  
Harry mounted his broom and nearly flew away when he saw a light through the trees. His eyes flew towards the glowing spot and he could see a woman dressed in silver robes reaching towards Towers' Master. She hugged him tightly and Harry realized they were probably... wife and husband? No, that didn't sound right. Lovers? Wrong again. Together? Nope, still didn't sound right. But the point was somewhere along those lines anyway. So, he left the place at a pretty high speed. No need to witness anything, since Towers had claimed many times that his Master knew a lot of things. It would be pretty obvious he would be staring at them. And anyway, he wouldn't be staring at them!  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
It was only the next morning that he realized that he had really talked to Towers' Master and that the man was probably immortal and much more powerful than even Dumbledore. And that realization came upon him as he saw, that morning, on his Transfigurations book, the Golden Amulet. He just stared at the thing and then put it over his neck. If somebody kept insisting, he would wear it!  
  
Ron, Hermione and Ginny also started wearing them when they saw him with it. The rune shone in its usual golden color, so he guessed there was no danger around. But he didn't relax too much, just in case. People were staring at their Amulets, but nobody made any comment, except Luna Lovegood who seemed quite pleased 'some people' had such powerful objects.  
  
The life of Hogwarts was going pretty normal, as normal as it could get in Hogwarts, that is. Slytherins hated Gryffindors, Gryffindors hated Slytherins, Hermione was learning all she could, Weasley products appeared here and there.  
  
And after two days, Harry had quite a surprise. He was walking by Professor Rose's quarter, when he heard music and voices. Being the curious person that he was, he stuck his ear to the door and listened.  
  
"Come now, Iris, I should be visiting Harry!" a male voice said and Harry's mouth dropped in surprise. Was that Sirius?!  
  
"You can visit him a bit later" Iris Rose, his Defence teacher said.  
  
"I'd rather visit him now. Later... we can have later for ourselves" Sirius said in a low purr.  
  
Harry jumped off the door and stared at it. Had he just heard right?! Were those Iris Rose and his godfather, Sirius?!  
  
There was a soft voice, he couldn't hear the words clearly anymore, since his ear wasn't stuck to the wood anymore, but he realized it was Rose's and just then Sirius went out the door.  
  
"Oh, my, Harry" he said, first in surprise, then his face widening into a grin. "How are you?"  
  
"Fine. And you?" Harry asked, not managing to get surprise off his face.  
  
"Wonderful! Simply great!" the other replied and pulled him into a hug. "Well, since you're here, come on in!"  
  
Before Harry could say something, Sirius pushed him inside, where his Defence Professor stood, looking thoughtful at a painting. When they came in, she stared at them, raising her eyebrows in surprise. A soft music rang, Celine Dion, if Harry was right.  
  
"Well, hello Harry" she said, a smile spreading across her face.  
  
"Hello, Professor" Harry said, staring and Sirius snorted.  
  
"Please, call me Iris out of class, ok?" she asked, in a friendly matter. "Come, sit down"  
  
Only then did Harry notice the table and two chairs in a part of a room. Sirius made a small wand movement and a chair from close to those moved next to the others. Then, he pushed his godson to the table and chairs, Iris laughing.  
  
Finally, they all sat down at the table, Harry feeling awkward.  
  
"So, how've you been?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Fine, thank you" the boy replied. "Um... what's up?"  
  
Iris smiled mischievously and Sirius grinned like mad.  
  
"I don't know how thrilling this might be to you, Harry, but... Um... how should I put this..."  
  
"How about 'I'm going out with Iris Rose'?" Harry suggested and Iris burst into laughter, Sirius saying loudly and proudly:  
  
"Yes! That's it!"  
  
Harry stared at the two and smiled. Sirius seemed to be happy... But he felt a bit weird. So, his godfather was dating... and he was dating his teacher, too... He knew he was a bit pale, but forced himself to smile.  
  
"Congratulations" he said.  
  
"You're shocked" Iris said with a soft smile. "I don't blame you, either"  
  
"I'm not shocked!" Harry said, defending himself, but Sirius had stopped grinning.  
  
"Yes you are. It's written all over your face. It has been written all over your face ever since you came in" she said, eyes twinkling in a comfortable way. Sirius looked at her and a soft smile came back on his lips. "Tea, Harry?" she asked pleasantly.  
  
"Yes, please" he replied and stared at her as she summoned some tea and three cups. "Thank you"  
  
"No problem" she replied and sipped a bit of her tea. Sirius gulped some of his own tea and ten started speaking again.  
  
"Sorry I shocked you, Harry" he said with a small smile. "I..."  
  
"Don't worry" Harry said, feeling calm. Iris suddenly grinned.  
  
"Well, what do you know..." she said.  
  
"What do we know?" Harry asked, frowning and Sirius raised his eyebrows.  
  
"She really has changed you" Iris murmured, nearly to herself. "If I recall correctly, your temper wasn't exactly good before... but now, you're quite understanding, I see" she said, her eyes soft.  
  
"Who changed me?!" Harry asked, confused and saw his godfather have the same expression.  
  
"The goddess" Iris muttered. "The goddess that appeared that night, the night of the attack"  
  
"Naranesh?" Harry asked, but Iris didn't reply. "If you say so..."  
  
Iris drank took another sip of her tea and then noticed Harry had finished his.  
  
"Could I please have your teacup?" she asked, putting her cup down and pointing to his teacup absentmindedly.  
  
"Yeah, sure" Harry replied, giving it to her, along with the plate. She carefully put them down on the table and turned the teacup upside down, some leaves falling on the small plate. She then stirred it three times and stared at the leaves. "What are you doing?" Harry asked, starring.  
  
"Reading in your tea" she replied, as if it were the most normal thing on earth. Harry turned towards Sirius, to get some explanation, but he seemed just as flabbergasted as he was, so he didn't ask anything. Iris let out a small 'hmm, hmm, hmm' and looked at the leaves from different angles, finally setting out to a way of watching them.  
  
"What do you see?" Harry asked, deciding to play along and wishing that she wouldn't see the grim.  
  
"I see many things, I'm trying to sort out which are right and which wrong" she replied in a dragged voice, thinking a lot more than speaking. Then, her head shot up. "There... I think I've got it" she said. "I see love... but not yours... not for a while... then it comes to you. Then, I see the grim"  
  
She paused as Harry sighed deeply and exasperatedly, making Iris look up to him, curiously.  
  
"The Grim again? Trelawney never gave me a break with this!" Harry complained and Iris smirked.  
  
"I didn't say it was there for you" she said mischievously. "That one who will die will be close to you, but he is not close to you now. It will affect you. And then I see... a beetle. Weird thing. It will bug you soon. And then I see a star with a dragon shape in it... Stars mean celestial help. Dragons mean mystical power and direct effects. Perhaps, the two combined would mean another use of the Torch"  
  
Iris stopped speaking and looked up to Harry.  
  
"That's all I see" she said slowly and smiled at him. Sirius leaned towards her, his hand gliding over hers, without him noticing he had done so.  
  
"I never knew you were into Divination" he said, surprised.  
  
"I was rather good at the subject" Iris replied. "But you can't make a living out of Divination, so I ceased my studies. However, there are times I get the urge to look into the globe or in coffee for people. It's as if something told me 'this is important'. And sometimes, I realize, the signs I see aren't really there, but many things I say come true. Not all, though"  
  
Harry just stared at her, before saying slowly:  
  
"So, that makes you a real Seer, huh?"  
  
"I guess so" she replied with a smile and Sirius shook his head. "But I never force things and I won't say that I see something when I don't. I once tried to gaze into the crystal globe to see my own future and nothing came out of it. However, Naranesh helped me a lot with different things. Now I can see some things I couldn't before"  
  
"You know, when you said you saw the grim, I thought you were joking.... Trelawney used to do that a lot and she's a real phony" the moment he said that, Harry realized that, no matter how sweet and kind Professor Iris was, she was still a Professor, and it was never good to insult a Professor in front of a Professor. But Iris chuckled a little.  
  
"Poor Cybil" she said. "A true Seer and nobody believes her"  
  
"What do you mean, 'a true Seer'?" Harry asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"I mean just that" Iris replied. "She was right about the grim, in your case, wasn't she?"  
  
"What do you mean, she was right?!" Harry questioned. "I'm still alive!"  
  
"Sirius, what's your Animagus shape?" Iris asked with a mischievous smile.  
  
"A huge black dog..." Sirius said, trailing off.  
  
"And what does a grim look like?" Iris asked Harry with the same mischievous smile.  
  
"A huge black dog" Harry replied, gaping. "But that doesn't mean she's a real Seer, does it? She said I would die!"  
  
"Well, she's a weird creature" Iris said, a bit thoughtful. "Deep down inside, she is a Seer. You've heard two of her Prophecies, haven't you?"  
  
"Yes, I have" Harry replied, raising his eyebrows. "But I..."  
  
"Over that, there's another layer, that says: 'I'm a Seer!'. But over that, there's a layer that knows that her seeing abilities are buried deep down inside, so it says, disappointedly, 'I'm no Seer'. And on the surface, she knows she's a seer, because she can feel a bit of the inner part of her, but she needs to counter some of the opposition of her 'no Seer' part, so she's overdoing it, trying to predict everything. And since many known Prophecies involve death and disaster, she only predicts death and disaster."  
  
Iris made a small stop and smiled at the two.  
  
"But don't forget" she added "Deep down inside, she is a true Seer and some of her information is true. Unfortunately, to realize which is the true part of her prediction is like looking for a needle in a haystack."  
  
"But in a way, she's still of no use in Divination" Harry commented.  
  
"Ah, true" Iris replied and leaned back down on her chair.  
  
Sirius just stared at her.  
  
"Could you read my teacup?" he asked and she nodded slowly and took it from him, turned it upside down on the plate and stared into the leaves.  
  
"I see fear" she said slowly after about two minutes. "And pain.... But it shall pass quickly, although it will be great. And I see... I see a woman"  
  
Iris's eyes became foggy and she leaned back down on the chair, staring dreamily at the wall.  
  
"I see a woman waiting for you and she is not me... she is not your lover, of friend, or relative, but she loves you and you love her... she is something else to you... I cannot tell. She is outside a cave. She says something to you and you bow your head. She is telling you to live at your full. You will rarely meet her, but she will help you loads..."  
  
Both Harry and Sirius stared at her, gaping.  
  
"You saw that in tea leaves?" he asked.  
  
"No, I saw ugly green things there" Iris replied with a small smile. "They were shaped into shapes that spoke of fear. But she came into my mind without me seeing her in the leaves... Remember what Naranesh said? About your Mistress? I thought that might be her."  
  
Harry stared at Sirius as he nodded dumbly and something told him it was time to go and leave them by themselves.  
  
"Um... I should go..." he said, timidly.  
  
"Oh, right!" Sirius said, getting up. "It's close to curfew"  
  
"Indeed it is" Iris said with a nod as both she and Harry got up.  
  
"Thank you for my tea-leaf-reading" he said.  
  
"Don't mention it" she replied with a smile.  
  
The two led him to the door and just as he was about to get out, he heard iris say:  
  
"Oh, and Harry?"  
  
"Yes?" he asked, turning towards her.  
  
"Could you do me a favor, please?" Iris asked and Harry thought she didn't have to ask, she could just tell him to do something, since she was a teacher, but then realized she was being very polite and was treating him like an equal.  
  
"Sure" he replied.  
  
"Send Amala to me tomorrow afternoon, will you, please?" she asked with a kind smile.  
  
"Of course" Harry replied and left for the Gryffindor Common Room after bidding them goodnight.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Harry entered the dormitory and, seeing Hermione and Ron, breathed out loudly, rolling his eyes.  
  
"What's up with all the couples?"  
  
The two stared at him as he crashed on his bed, rolling his eyes.  
  
"Um, mate?" Ron asked, slowly. "What are you going on about?"  
  
"Never mind" he replied, staring at the ceiling.  
  
"No, tell us" Hermione kindly said.  
  
"Two days ago I had a nightmare" he replied. "Voldemort was really furious at me and the Torch"  
  
"That's understandable" Hermione said with a small snort. "But you haven't had them in a while, why are they back?"  
  
"No clue" Harry replied.  
  
"Maybe you should go tell Dumbledore about it?" Ron suggested. "Or at least write to Sirius about it"  
  
Harry snorted.  
  
"I don't need to write to him. So, let me finish. After I had the nightmare, I went out with my broom for a flight and I saw a cloaked and hooded man on the edge of the Forbidden Forest" he said, a small smile on his lips.  
  
"A Death Eater!" Hermione breathed and Harry smiled widely.  
  
"I knew you'd say that. Actually, no, he wasn't a Death Eater. He was Towers' Master"  
  
"How do you know? I mean..." Hermione started, but Harry didn't let her finish.  
  
"I spoke to him" he replied calmly and Hermione stared at him for a second before she cried:  
  
"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?!"  
  
"Aaah" Ron said, digging in his ear. "No need to yell it in my ear!"  
  
However, Hermione ignored him, staring at Harry furiously.  
  
"Well, he was a huge winged lion" he replied, getting up into sitting position.  
  
"I thought you said he was cloaked and hooded?" Hermione said, narrowing her eyes.  
  
"Well, he was. So, I saw him as a huge winged lion and then he turned into a cloaked, hooded man. I took out my wand and threatened to shoot him, but when he asked me 'you want to shoot me?', I recognized his voice from some of my dreams –he sometimes appeared in my dreams, along with Towers and they were as real as the ones with Voldemort- and um... we started talking"  
  
"Yes, you told us about the dreams" Hermione said impatiently. "But what'd you talk about?"  
  
"He told me to relax... said Voldemort will be giving me a headache, but he won't act for a while" Harry replied. "And, at the end, he said I should date if I wanted to"  
  
Ron snickered.  
  
"Maybe you should!" he said cheerfully.  
  
"RONALD WEASLEY!" Hermione cried, this time purposefully, in his years.  
  
"Ow!" he replied. "What?"  
  
"Do you realize what Harry just said?" she asked, glaring.  
  
"Yeah. He met Towers' Master who told him he should date. I find it funny" Ron replied, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"He met a weird, possibly not human, extremely powerful, incredible wizard and you can think about is the fact that he told Harry he should date?!" Hermione shrieked. "Because, out of what Towers said, he seems quite old and immortal and very, very powerful. Remember that?! If Towers was as powerful as he was, just think how powerful his Master must be!"  
  
As Hermione finished... 'explaining' the situation, Ron seemed to finally comprehend the situation and his mouth dropped. Even Harry gaped a little when he heard it put that way.  
  
"Whoa" Ron said.  
  
"And all you care about is what he joked about!" Hermione said, her eyes glowing.  
  
"Take it easy, Hermione" Harry breathed. "All he did was tell me to relax, you know... have fun..."  
  
"But still..." she said with a small sigh. "You met such an extraordinary person and..."  
  
"Well, Dumbledore is extraordinary and I didn't see you anywhere near this excited when you were in our first year" Harry mused.  
  
"Yes, but he's not as powerful and he's not immortal" Hermione reasoned.  
  
"No, but he's here and I don't see you going to see him or anything" Harry replied. "You're overreacting... I'll probably get to see Towers' Master again sometime"  
  
Hermione sighed reluctantly.  
  
"So, what else happened?" she asked slowly.  
  
"When I left, he met a woman dressed in silver, his Mistress probably. I left quickly, however" Harry said in a fast way.  
  
"Do you think he was his Mistress?" Hermione asked. "I mean... maybe she wasn't"  
  
"Well, they um... hugged" Harry said and Hermione stared at him wide-eyed before she started laughing.  
  
"Oh, come on, Harry! If two people hug, that doesn't mean they're together! Remember, I hug you too and we're not together" she laughed.  
  
"Well, there was something about them, too..." Harry defended.  
  
"Ok, I believe you" Hermione said, putting a hand on his shoulder, reassuringly.  
  
"And guess what..." Harry said, a smile returning on his face. "I was just passing in front of Professor Rose's quarters and I thought I heard voices and music... And guess who was inside?"  
  
"Professor Rose?!" Ron said, shrugging.  
  
"Rose and Sirius. As in Sirius Black" Harry said and Hermione and Ron gaped. "He was coming to visit me and was just stepping out the door, so he dragged me inside her quarters and told me they were together..."  
  
"Whoa! Sirius and Rose!" Ron said, gaping.  
  
"That's great!" Hermione said, grinning.  
  
"I guess it is" Harry replied. "And guess what, turns out she has some talent in Divination. She read in my tea leaves and in Sirius's tea leaves"  
  
"What did she say about you?" Ron asked.  
  
"Well, she said there would be love around me –do people here have an obsession or something?!- but it wouldn't come to me for a while. She also said she sees the Grim"  
  
"What?!" Ron and Hermione said together, both wearing outraged expressions.  
  
"But she said it wasn't for me" Harry continued, smiling amusedly. "Hey, I think that's what I looked like when she said she saw the Grim... and she said something about a beetle that will bug me"  
  
"That could be Rita" Hermione said, nodding slowly.  
  
"And she said something about a dragon in a star and said it meant mystical and direct celestial help" Harry continued.  
  
"That's... wacky" Ron said, shaking his head.  
  
"Tell me about it?" Harry replied. "Well, I should go to bed, I'm kinda tired"  
  
"Would you like me to leave?" Hermione asked.  
  
"No... don't worry" Harry replied, took off his shoes, jumped on his bed and pulled the curtains. "Night, guys"  
  
Hermione and Ron replied a good night and, after that, looking at each other, got up from Ron's bed and went downstairs, letting Harry sleep.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
"Minister! Minister!" a Russian-looking, Russian accented blonde man cried after Cornelius Fudge.  
  
"Yes, Adrianov?" Cornelius asked.  
  
"I found out where the traitor, Towers is" he said.  
  
"Where?" Cornelius Fudge asked.  
  
"This cassiette was sent to us by someone. It is a Muggle contraption" Adrianov said, waving it in front the British Minister.  
  
"Let's go with it to Weasley, he'll know what to do"  
  
Half an hour later, they were watching TV in Arthur Weasley's office. On the screen, there was a black convertible and a man was driving it through a desert, at sunset, with music played out loud, while he was singing along with it.  
  
"Welcome to the Hotel California  
  
Such a lovely place  
  
Such a lovely face  
  
Plenty of room at the Hotel California  
  
Any time of year  
  
You can find me here  
  
Her name was Tiffany Twisted  
  
She's got the Mercedes Benz  
  
She's got a lot of pretty, pretty boys  
  
That she calls 'friends'  
  
How they dance in the courtyard  
  
Sweet summer sweat  
  
Some dance to remember  
  
Some dance to forget  
  
So I called up the Captain  
  
Please bring me my wine  
  
He said:  
  
"We haven't had that spirit here since 1969""  
  
"What the hell is this?" Cornelius Fudge asked, staring at the TV.  
  
"The key!" Adrianov replied. "He must be where the cassiette is recorded"  
  
"He's right" Arthur replied. "Muggles can't change the place where the cassette is recorded magically, so he must be there"  
  
"And where exactly would there be?" Fudge asked. "And who sent this, anyway?"  
  
"One of the Amierican Aurors, John Eagles" Adrianov replied.  
  
"Well, on the double, move it! We must find him!" Fudge cried and Adrianov rushed to announce his Auror colleagues that they should find out where Towers was. And all as secretly as possible. There would be Kingsley and another wizard from an old family of wizards, Richard Drum. Nobody else would find out...  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
That night, at the Order of the Phoenix urgent meeting.  
  
"Everybody here?" Dumbledore asked. "Good. So, Kingsley, Arthur, what have you found out?"  
  
"Well, this cassette –recorded by a Muggle- was sent to the Auror Adrianov this morning. It shows Jack Towers in a desert somewhere, in his car –a convertible- and the Aurors are about to discover where he is!"  
  
"We already did..." Kingsley said. "It's in the US, near the Great Canyon"  
  
"Can we see the cassette?" Dumbledore requested and Arthur pushed it inside the VCR and they all stared at the images of Towers singing in his convertible.  
  
First, it was nearly unheard, but then it started growing in intensity and before anybody knew it, Arabella Figg and the ones directly related to the Muggle culture, were laughing.  
  
"What on Earth are you laughing about?!" Severus Snape scowled. "This situation is serious!"  
  
"No, it's not!" the old lady replied. "This cannot possibly be a Muggle recording..."  
  
"Why not? I know there are many Muggle movies that show men driving" Arthur Weasley replied, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Yes, but look at the way it's recorded!" Arabella said. "I mean, it's nearly a close-up and see? The image is strictly on Towers, all the time! I mean, that's not possible, unless a Muggle was going at the same speed as Towers' car and that road doesn't seem crowded enough for anybody to be doing that without him noticing, you know? And if it were a Muggle, how would he send the tape to the Auror? And if he were a wizard, why is he using a camera? And doesn't anybody seem bothered by the fact that Towers is using a car in the United States, when his war is here? And besides, look at him, he's spinning the wheel from time to time, but the road, it's straight ahead! And even if that was somehow explainable, what would a wizard be doing with a Muggle camera? We have Pensives, he could put his memory of Towers in one. Or, he could call the US Ministry quick enough to get the US Aurors there before Towers could escape. This is all a great joke. Who sent the tape?"  
  
"An US Auror, John Eagles..." Arthur muttered, unbelieving the way Arabella talked so quickly. But the fact that she started laughing again made him feel awkward. "What?" he asked in a small whisper.  
  
"The song... the song on the tape! It's 'Hotel California' by the Eagles, every Muggle that is anywhere close to our age knows that, it was a huge hit, number 1 of the year. There's no possible way to miss out the most popular song of the year"  
  
"So, what you're saying is that..." Sirius said, slowly.  
  
"It's a fake! Well, sorry, Kings, seems you'll be hunting Towers' jokes for a while" Tonks said, grinning.  
  
"I don't mind, really" he replied. "It was about time I had a vacation"  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
The next morning, all the students were gathering in the Great Hall for breakfast. Harry, Hermione, Ron and Amala took their seats at the Gryffindor table and started eating, cheerfully chatting about everything between heaven and hell. When Dumbledore decided the Great Hall was as full as it would ever be, he stood up and gently hit his glass with a spoon. Luckily he had put a 'sonorus' charm on the glass, or he wouldn't have been heard in a million years.  
  
"Dear students" he said cheerfully. "I am happy to announce you that, since the first battle of this war was quite easy on us and it has been proven we have quite a lot of friends, we have decided to throw a party to celebrate the alliance we have with the naiads, dryads, magical creatures and goddesses."  
  
Laughs and cheers rang through the Great Hall and the Headmaster smiled. Severus Snape banged his head on the back of his chair and McGonagall looked as if she had a really bad day.  
  
"The party will be held next Saturday. That was all. Thank you" Dumbledore said cheerfully and sat down, letting the whole Hall to chatter enthusiastically.  
  
"Hermione, will you do me the great honor of going with me to the party?" Ron asked, like a knight in shiny armor, making Harry chuckle like mad.  
  
"Why of course, Ron" she replied, smiling like a true lady and looking around like one, too, before laughing, Ron joining in after a second or two. "So, Harry, who're you going with?"  
  
Harry stopped chuckling and stared at Hermione.  
  
"Oh, no. Not again" he muttered. "I have no clue"  
  
Ron laughed his heart out and so did Hermione.  
  
"How about one of the Patil twins? I assure you, they're quite..." he started, but was interrupted by Harry.  
  
"Hating us at the moment" he completed and chuckled. "I don't know..."  
  
Just then, a giggling Hannah Abott reached their table and said:  
  
"Hi, Harry! You going with someone?"  
  
"No..." he said, slowly.  
  
"Wanna go with me?" she asked, reddening.  
  
"Uh... I was um..." Harry stuttered, thinking that Hannah wasn't exactly anywhere near his type. "Going to ask my girlfriend!"  
  
Hannah giggled and turned to the Hufflepuff table.  
  
"See? Told you he wouldn't accept!" she said. "So, don't say I don't dare do something!"  
  
She left towards that table, leaving Harry staring and Hermione chuckling.  
  
"Seems like she was dared to ask you" the girl said. "So, you're asking your girlfriend, huh?"  
  
"Oh, shut up!" Harry replied. "Who am I going to ask, anyway?"  
  
"Don't ask me, mate!" Ron said, grinning. "And you, Amala? Who're you going with?"  
  
"I'm going alone" she replied with a smile. "I don't want to go with anyone except my boyfriend, but he's not available"  
  
"Really?!" Parvati asked. "He doesn't sound like a good boyfriend at all!"  
  
Amala stared at her. She hadn't even realized she was sitting next to the other girl.  
  
"He's a great boyfriend!" she said, grinning. "Just that... He's not that available right now"  
  
"Is he going with someone else?" Parvati asked, sticking her nose up.  
  
"Oh, no" Amala replied, chuckling. "He's just not available right now"  
  
"Who is he?" Parvati asked, shaking her head and Amala shot a glance throughout the Great Hall, as if searching for someone. Then, she turned her grinning face towards Parvati and replied with a smirk.  
  
"Severus Snape"  
  
Parvati's eyes widened and she started laughing, some of the others joining, including Amala. Hermione, Ron and Harry looked at each other and grinned themselves.  
  
"Oh, come on! Who is he?" she asked, with her nose a bit lower.  
  
"You'll see" she mysteriously replied. "I just hope he'll manage to... He's not a student here, you see"  
  
"Hmm..." Parvati said. "Long distance relationships.... Must be difficult to have one of those"  
  
"Yes..." Amala replied.  
  
"But then... isn't he a student? How come he could come?" Parvati curiously asked.  
  
"Oh, he finished school already. He's older than I am" Amala said with a slight smile.  
  
Parvati smiled and got back to her breakfast.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Amala went down the usual way to the dungeons, hiding from anybody that passed her. She somehow managed to avoid even Mrs. Norris and Mrs. McGonagall (in her cat form, of course) on her way. Corridors passed her quickly as she sneaked to the well-known quarters of Severus Snape. She knocked and heard a small 'come in'. She entered the quarters and closed the door quietly.  
  
"Hello, Sev" she said with a smile. "How are you?"  
  
"Wonderful" he replied with a bit of sarcasm in his eyes. "Dumbledore decided it was a great idea to start a party. Ugh."  
  
"I think it's a fun idea, it could cheer people up" she said and went to him, sitting down on his lap. "My problem is, however, that there is only one man I would want to go with and he might have a problem with admitting he would go with me"  
  
Severus groaned and put his head on her shoulder.  
  
"Don't worry, I don't mind" Amala said cheerfully. "I understand. I just wanted to say... is it ok to see me dancing with other people all night?"  
  
"It's alright" he replied and looked into her eyes as she hugged him.  
  
"I wouldn't want to ruin your intimacy or to possibly endanger your job or anything" she said with a small smile and he stared at her.  
  
"What?" he asked.  
  
"Well, those are the problems, right?" she asked, looking at him confused.  
  
"No" he replied. "You couldn't endanger my job unless we would have... made love. That would be illegal, since you're underage. And I wouldn't mind if people would find out who I was dating with"  
  
"Then, what's the problem?" she asked. "If those don't bother you?"  
  
"It wouldn't do good for your reputation for people to realize you were dating me... It's the whole age-difference that's so bothering. I'm old enough to be your father and many would think that this is just... wrong. You're less than half my age, for goodness sake. It's not natural " Severus said, looking concerned into her eyes.  
  
"What?" she said, slowly. "I don't care about them. But this age problem... it's you who's bothered by it, I see it in your eyes, I hear it in the way you talk."  
  
"Well, admit it. It's not..."  
  
"It doesn't matter" she said, kissing him on the cheek. "Severus, I love you for whom you are, not for how old you are!"  
  
"I'm old enough to be your father" he said to her slowly.  
  
"Man, you have an obsession" she sighed. "Don't put my father into this. The last thing I need is anything related to him, he'd go ballistic if he found out I was going out with you and so would my mother. But really, now, Sev, you think I have any problem with age whatsoever?"  
  
She looked into his concerned eyes and let out another sigh.  
  
"Ok, I have a problem with age, but it'll be gone next year. It'll be gone on the 19th of June. That's my birthday. But other than that, you should know I don't care about age"  
  
"It matters" he said slowly.  
  
"Hell it does" she replied and hugged him tight. "Because Severus, if you were as old as Professor Dumbledore, I'd still go after you. And you're a thousand years younger than him"  
  
Severus snorted, imagining Dumbledore being chased around by Amala. She could see her doing that, actually. He put his arms around Amala and muttered slowly:  
  
"I love you"  
  
"I love you too" she easily replied and pulled back a little and kissed him. "Now, no more of this age stupidity, ok?"  
  
"Are you sure it doesn't bother you?" Severus asked.  
  
"Positive" she replied.  
  
"And what if others would find out?" he asked.  
  
"I'd laugh my head off seeing their faces. I told Parvati Patil that you were my boyfriend today and she took it as a joke"  
  
Severus raised an eyebrow and Amala laughed.  
  
"Don't worry. She was bugging me about the party and I said my boyfriend wasn't available, she asked whom it was, so I stared around the Great Hall before telling her you were him. My colleagues really laughed at that"  
  
"But it would be pretty unnerving if people found out, so let's keep it a secret for a while" Severus muttered.  
  
"Great idea" she replied as he gently stroked her cheek before kissing her gently.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
AN: Sorry to keep you guys waiting (again) but had a few lack-of- inspiration problems... And now, when I was writing again, I had a few... grammar? mistakes. Like melting two words together (making Harry=Haking), or writing really, really weird things... oops. But I'm back and writing here!  
  
Thanks to my wonderful, wonderful, wonderful reviewers!!! –seems like a threat works a lot more than I expected-  
  
Dark672: Thank you!  
  
Inu-kokoro: Wow, you like it! You really like it! –poor mother, though, she woke up in a full scaled war! :-)  
  
Sukisep: Thank you! :-)))))  
  
Kyncer: Thank you for reviewing... You will see why Amala went through the veil herself and not one of the Order. As for Amala and Snape, well, he seems to have quite an age problem himself. She doesn't really mind. And Harry's relationships... Well, he had quite a problem with Cho, right? But right now, something around him is changing... You'll get romance, but with who and when, I ain't telling!  
  
Other chapters:  
  
Thanks to:  
  
nobody for reviewing and for the TBC thing. chuckle That sounds weird.  
  
Cara: Thanks for reviewing. I sent you an e-mail, but I'll reply to the question here as well, since for a while I was wondering about that myself: a flame is a rather nasty review where you say bad things about one's story. Like, for e.g.: "your story sucks"  
  
Harryp/chamerdfreak: Thanks for the reviews! 


	33. Balls and Surprises

Disclaimer: Own nada!  
  
Dedication: to the Red Dragons Order...  
  
Chapter 32: Balls and Surprises  
  
"And friends come to the call  
  
They'll read our names on the door  
  
If they could read our minds they'd find  
  
That since we're sharing the same bed,  
  
We're not sharing the same dreams...anymore"  
  
"Oh, shut the hell up!" Sirius said, nearly throwing the Muggle radio across the room. He'd had a bad night and a sad song about how bad relationships went after a while were not welcomed. Instead, listening to the voice of reason, he switched to another channel.  
  
"Let's go hand in hand  
  
Into love-me land  
  
Side by side  
  
To a world that shines so bright!"  
  
"More bloody likely!" he said and grinned to himself and proceeded to getting up from his bed. A difficult task, since he had a headache. Argh, note to self: never ever drink without supervision like that! And if drinking without supervision, then he would not think about Severus Snape and Lucius Malfoy. Nope. Never. Must hide all alcohol away. And never think about the twelve years in Azkaban, either.  
  
He got up slowly and threw some clothes on himself so that just in case somebody was in his house, he would be decent enough not to feel extremely weird afterward. Yeah, if Remus may have come, that wouldn't be a problem, but if Dumbledore himself entered the house, well... Let's just say you don't want to be walking through the house in underpants when a man over a hundred is visiting.  
  
He went to Buckbeak's room and fed the hippogriff –who seemed to be ok- and went down to the kitchen. As soon as he had been back, he had been told that Kreacher had been taken away by Jack Towers and he had been replaced by Winky. The poor thing had been simply delighted to serve another wizarding family and Sirius was a lot more like her old home than Hogwarts.  
  
He was just drinking some coffee when a head appeared in the fire.  
  
"Hello, love" said the beautifully-faced woman.  
  
"Iris" he said with a grin. "Do come in!"  
  
"Oh, no, no, have a class in ten minutes" she replied with a smile. "Have you heard of the ball this Saturday?"  
  
"Um... nope" he replied truthfully. "What ball?"  
  
"Dumbledore is throwing one to celebrate the first battle" she replied.  
  
"Is he nuts?" Sirius asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Of course!" she replied with the same casual smile. "But that's not the issue here. Coming?"  
  
"Well... yes" he replied after thinking it over for a minute. "But am I allowed to?"  
  
"Definitely. I asked Dumbledore if you could come and he said yes" Iris replied. "See you on Saturday, then"  
  
"See you" he replied and smiled as her head disappeared. His day was getting better. And then he realized he had no clue what time he had to be there. "Oh, well, I'll just go there in the early hours of the morning, then" he said to himself with a grin.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Harry yawned and threw himself out of bed. Gosh, he'd have to get ready for classes. Six classes and the first just had to be Potions. And who on earth would he ask to the ball?  
  
Of course Ron didn't have that problem now... No, he was fine. He had Hermione. But what if 'the boy-who-lived' would go alone? Would that be such a terrible thing?  
  
He got dressed and went to breakfast with Ron, not seeing the girls around. They both chatted about the school's normal insanity for a while, not even noticing how they entered the Great Hall and sat to breakfast.  
  
"So what I say, mate" Ron said "is that all Slytherins should be hanged"  
  
"Hey, come on, Draco's not that bad lately" Harry said slowly and shot a glance at said Slytherin who was eating between his Pansy Parkinson and a first year.  
  
"Of course not, but at least Crabbe and Goyle" Ron replied.  
  
"Pardon me" said a dreamy voice behind Harry and he turned to see who it was. "Harry, do you have a date for the ball?"  
  
Harry looked at the girl in front of him: Luna Lovegood. She was smiling at him while her eyes –half-closed- were looking at him maybe a bit dreamily. She had a long necklace with a huge medallion made out of something not very expensive-looking, but quite nice and two quite large earrings shaped like balls and made out of... was that fur?!  
  
"No, I don't" he replied, staring at her.  
  
"Neither do I" she said slowly. "Wanna go with me?"  
  
"Um... sure" Harry replied. It wasn't as if he had anyone better to chose.  
  
"Wonderful. See you there, then" she said and went back to the Ravenclaw table, leaving the two to stare behind her.  
  
"Well, mate, seems you have no problem with the ball anymore, now do ya?" Ron snickered.  
  
"Shut up" Harry replied, elbowing his friend who snickered.  
  
"You like her, don't you?" he asked.  
  
"No" Harry replied truthfully and Ron lost his mischievous smile.  
  
"Oh... ok, then" he replied and dug back in his eggs.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
"POTTER!" Snape cried as Harry was about to put his next ingredient to the potion he was brewing.  
  
"What?" Harry asked and quickly added: "Sir"  
  
"What happens if you add that now? Mr. Malfoy, do you know?" the Potion Master said, after glancing around the dungeon.  
  
"The whole potion blows up" Draco replied with a wicked smile. Harry couldn't tell if he was smiling like that because he was thrilled of the thought of the mess the potion would make by blowing up or by the fact that he was in trouble.  
  
"Right. Ten points to Slytherin" Snape said with a small nod and an unpleasant smile. Well, his attitude hadn't changed since he had started going out with Amala, that was true. "So, Mr. Potter, that means ten points from Gryffindor. And you, Mrs. Granger, couldn't you tell him not to do it? Five more points from Gryffindor"  
  
Harry sighed. This way, they'd be at the end of the House Cup Championship that year. Snape moved back to the front of the class and stared at Neville's cauldron.  
  
"Very well, Mr. Longbottom. I see your skills have improved greatly since winter. You haven't blown up any cauldrons anymore and you haven't messed up badly since then. Therefore, I say this calls for a special occasion... the Headmaster claimed I was not fair in my point-awarding. Therefore, I award... one point to Gryffindor!"  
  
The Gryffindors stared and Ron even went as far as to start laughing. One point? One point?!  
  
"What's so funny, Mr. Weasley? Care to enlighten us?" Snape snapped.  
  
"Um... you not being fair, Professor" Ron replied nodding fast. "Funny. You're fair, the Headmaster must know?"  
  
Snape stared at him and shook his head.  
  
"This young and already a suck-up. Indeed, a Weasley" he sighed to himself, making the Slytherins laugh. Ron mumbled something and the Gryffindors glared.  
  
Harry sighed to himself. Some things never changed... but others did. Did Severus Snape award a point to Gryffindor? That was a first. Even if it was well-deserved.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
And so came the great day of the ball. It had been settled to six o'clock in the afternoon –as they all found out off the notice board, since Dumbledore had of course forgotten to tell them-. Hermione had locked herself in the room at three o'clock, taking Amala with her –the later had ignored Ron's loud cry of 'but your boyfriend won't be there' and sighed to herself. Yes, she knew Severus wouldn't be able to even dace with her, but she would still look good-. The boys only took less than an hour to get themselves ready.  
  
And then, they had to actually go down to the Great Hall...Ugh. Harry felt nervous, although a lot less nervous than in his fourth year. Ron seemed to be happy at going with Hermione –he seemed to remember her ball-look from two years ago-.  
  
Amala was wonderfully dressed in a long white robe and she wore a gold necklace and gold earrings. Her black hair was loose, but very well- looking. She wore just a little bit of make-up, but she looked great.  
  
"Come on, Harry, give me your arm" she said with a grin.  
  
"Excuse me?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.  
  
"You heard me!" she laughed. "Give me your arm! Don't be shy, I don't byte..."  
  
"Snape would kill me" he muttered in her ear.  
  
"Nah, I think he'd understand" she replied quietly with a grin. After that, she raised her voice "Besides, you've got a date waiting for you there, but until then, you should help a girl in distress and take my arm, oh, night in shiny armor!"  
  
"Oh, my, Harry's afraid to take a girl's arm" Ginny laughed. "Fraidy-cat!"  
  
Harry smiled shyly before he took Amala's arm.  
  
"Well, let's go" Ron said, grinning and the four exited the common room, chatting happily. Soon after them, Ginny came in a quick pace.  
  
"Hey, Harry, do you have another arm?" she asked with a chuckle.  
  
"What?!" he asked, confused.  
  
"I'm meeting my date there, so I really don't have anyone with whom to walk" she replied and Amala laughed.  
  
"What, sharing Harry?! No way!"  
  
"Oh, yes!" Ginny said. "Don't be greedy!"  
  
"Fine! But I got to him first!" Amala said and Harry found himself between two women. "Harry, why on earth are you so tensed?"  
  
"Maybe he doesn't like too many women by his side" Ginny giggled and Harry turned red.  
  
After walking with the two girls through the whole castle, Harry finally made it to the entrance to the Great Hall, where there were a lot of students waiting. Of course, Luna spotted him quickly as he let go of the two.  
  
"Hello, Harry" she said and waved slowly.  
  
"Hi, Luna" he replied and went to her. To his surprise, she hugged him tightly, making him wonder if there was something in the air tonight.  
  
"Let's go in, most students are inside" she said and smiled.  
  
Harry felt a bit surprised before he realized that of course this time there were no school champions to open the ball. He smiled at her and they both went inside... or rather tried to, before he heard a loud cry:  
  
"HE is your date?!"  
  
They both turned to see Ron eyeing his sister with a terrible look on his face. Hermione was trying to calm him down, but then Harry saw who was at her arm: Draco Malfoy.  
  
"Why, I do believe I am, Weasel" Draco sneered. "Have a problem with that?"  
  
"Of course I do!" Ron replied. "How dare you go out with my sister"  
  
"Calm down, Ron, it's not as if he were hurting her or anything" Hermione said.  
  
"Not hurting her!" he cried.  
  
"But you're hurting me!" Ginny said. "Please, Ron, think about it: him or Michael Corner?"  
  
"What?! Michael Corner!" Ron said and Hermione rolled her eyes.  
  
"But at least Draco is more mature" she said. "Let them be!"  
  
"But..." he started, offended.  
  
"Let them!" she snapped and he grumbled as she led him to the Great Hall.  
  
Harry looked behind them and then at Ginny, the youngest of the Weasleys. She was Ron's sister and Ron was like a brother... she also seemed to be his sister.  
  
"Ron may have forgotten this, Malfoy, but I haven't" Harry said with an amused smile. "Hurt her and I'll kill you!"  
  
"I'll watch out for that" he replied simply.  
  
After that, Harry offered his arm to Luna and they entered the Great Hall.  
  
"You know, he stopped dating all those girls when he started going out with Ginny" Luna said slowly.  
  
"Oh my God! He was a don Juan, I forgot" Harry said, his eyes widening.  
  
"Was, past tense" Luna said and stifled her laughter. "Ginny made him stop chasing women. She has that effect on men"  
  
"Right" he said and nodded to himself, as he took in the arrangement of the Hall.  
  
There were small round tables everywhere and most of the teachers sat at the same table. Severus Snape was looking through the Hall glaring at all students. It was pretty much like Harry's fourth year.  
  
Amala sat down with Harry and Luna and she ordered herself some food, after Harry explained to her how she could do it. The two of them also ordered some food.  
  
After they had finished eating, at the teacher's table, Sybill Trelawney appeared, so Snape decided to walk around the Hall. He went to Hermione and Ron and said something nobody could get, but that sounded menacing. The two nodded quickly and, after he left, they smiled at each other. In two minutes, Hermione went over to their table to say something.  
  
"Amala, could I have a word with you?" she asked and dragged the girl away from the company.  
  
Harry looked at them and shrugged as they took Ron and exited the Hall.  
  
"So, how are you, Harry?" Luna asked.  
  
"I'm fine. How're you?" he asked and realized just how standard the conversation was, but Luna didn't seem to notice.  
  
"Wonderful. My dad has a great story on the ghouls in the Egyptian pyramids. It's going to be a great edition!"  
  
"Really?" Harry asked. "What's it about?"  
  
Before he knew it, he had been dragged into a conversation about myths of the wizards with Luna and she was happily providing him all types of information. Which helped him understand that she just had very weird ideas and preferences when it came to passing time and wearing clothes, but otherwise she was rather intelligent and kind. Well, the intelligent part he should have realized earlier, after all, she was in Ravenclaw.  
  
So, it seemed that she knew a lot of everything, but that she preferred all things that were unsure, uncertain, unproved. And she was always dreamy because she dreamed of the day when she and her father would finally prove their theories. That explained a lot.  
  
It was actually funny how people actually were when you got to know them... Maybe Severus Snape wasn't such a bad man either, he was starting to realize. Maybe Amala saw the... human in him.  
  
He glanced around to find him, but he seemed to have left the Hall He didn't blame him either, since next to his seat sat Trelawney. Rose hadn't yet got there. But otherwise, the Hall was full.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Amala was standing next to Greenhouse Three and was smiling widely. Severus had went to Ron and Hermione and, in a snappy tone –as not to raise any suspicions- told them to get her out of the Hall and next to the greenhouse. And of course Hermione had dragged her out and had taken Ron with her, saying she had her own little plan with her boyfriend.  
  
So, now she awaited for Severus to arrive. And she didn't wait long.  
  
"Lovely evening, isn't it, Mrs. Wright?" said a slow silky voice from behind her, making her turn around.  
  
"Yes, Mr. Snape, I do believe it is" she said, deciding to play along. She smiled subtly and stretched her robes with her hands, making them look like a large dress. "But why have you called me here tonight, Mr. Snape?"  
  
He laughed quietly and she dropped her act –and her robes along with it-, joining him in his laughter.  
  
"Because the dungeons are too cold and dark for a young woman" he replied.  
  
She smiled at him and he took her hand, going with her to the front of the greenhouse from where the moon could be seen floating on the beautiful night sky.  
  
"Never knew you were a romantic" she whispered to him.  
  
"There are many things you don't know about me" he said quietly with a small smile which turned quickly in a sad one.  
  
"Hey, don't lose it now, Sev" she said, squeezing his hand easily. "Let's not let shadows of the past darken the present, shall we?"  
  
"Fine" he replied.  
  
They looked at the moon hand in hand for a while before he put a hand over her shoulders and she immediately leaned on him.  
  
"What if somebody sees us here like this?" she muttered.  
  
"Nobody will, they haven't finished eating yet and if they have, they know the dance will start soon" he replied.  
  
Amala smiled at him before she turned to look at the sky again. Yes, fighting for him had proved to be a very good idea.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
"Would you like a drink?" Draco asked his beautiful girlfriend.  
  
"Why, yes" she replied with a huge smile.  
  
Draco nodded and went to get the drink from the small bar that Dumbledore had put there –difference from two years ago-. Of course, there were no alcoholic drinks, but still. He grabbed three butterbeers and went back to the table with them. Meanwhile, Ron and Hermione had returned from outside and Ron dragged her to their table, since theirs was occupied.  
  
"Do we have desert?" Ron asked casually.  
  
"I thinks so" Ginny replied and sighed to herself. Was there really no way to get Ron out of there?  
  
"Great! Mind if we sit here? Our table's been taken" Ron asked, not noticing Hermione's 'subtle' suggestions that they should take another table. Draco looked at them and decided that, even if it cost him a night with Ginny, getting along with the Weasleys was a great idea, so he replied with a small, nearly unnoticeable sigh.  
  
"Sure, why not?" he said and sat down with the two drinks. "Would you guys like some drinks?"  
  
"Oh, you needn't bother, Ron will get them, right Ron?" Hermione said with one of her best smiles.  
  
"Sure I will" he muttered and walked over to the bar.  
  
"Sorry about this, Ginny, Draco" Hermione said, smiling shyly. "I couldn't stop him..."  
  
"Don't bother" Ginny replied. "Hey, look, there's Snape, where's he been?"  
  
Hermione saw him enter and replied with a small innocent shrug:  
  
"Dunno"  
  
But as soon as Draco turned his head to look for somebody in the Great Hall, she mouthed to her: 'tell you later'. Ginny nodded and Draco looked for a few more seconds in the opposite direction before his head snapped back.  
  
"Here comes your brother with the drinks" he told Ginny. "Hermione, do you reckon the dance starts soon?"  
  
"Yes, I think so" Hermione replied with a chuckle. "I'll try to keep Ron off your tail, but I make no promises"  
  
"Thanks" Draco said and Ron brought the drinks. "Hey, look at that!"  
  
The other three turned to look at what Draco was showing them.  
  
"Why, it's Sirius Black and Professor Rose" Ginny said, her eyes widening.  
  
"Yes, it is!" Hermione said. "Seems like they're together..."  
  
"Definitely" Draco said with a nod. "Who'd have known?"  
  
Hermione and Ron exchanged a look, but that went unnoticed. And after that, finally, Dumbledore stood up and gave the signal for the beginning of the dance –making Ginny mutter 'finally'-. The Weird Sisters were playing again.  
  
Draco pompously asked Ginny to dance and she accepted, both of them going to the middle of the dance ring. And again, one could notice the difference fro two years ago: the table, although perfectly clear, remained on their spots since the arrangement of the space was so good, there was a dance ring from the beginning. And of course, this time it wasn't crowded because of the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students.  
  
"Let's go dance, Hermione" Ron said, gazing after his sister.  
  
"Actually, I was thinking of something better" she said with a mind taking smile.  
  
"Really?" Ron asked, pushing Ginny in the back of his mind.  
  
"Yes... How about you go bring two butterbeers and we go outside?" she asked, smiling her most attractive smile.  
  
"Sure, no problem" Ron replied and got up to search for the drinks. Meanwhile, Hermione searched the Great Hall for somebody –and managed to find her soon-  
  
"Amala! How'd it go?" she asked the white-robed girl.  
  
"Great" she replied, coming over to her. "Never knew he was a romantic, too..."  
  
Hermione grinned and noticed Ron come up with the butterbeers.  
  
"Well, gotta go!" she said to her friend and got up. Amala nodded in a friendly way to Ron and he nodded back. She looked around to find someone to sit with, but she noticed that Harry was dancing with Luna and their table was empty. Ginny and Draco were also dancing. Actually, nearly everybody was dancing. She noticed a table with a single spear chair at it that she would very much like to sit at, but she wasn't sure it would be a great idea. After all, the table currently seated Dumbledore, McGonagall, Severus, Iris and Sirius.  
  
To her surprise, Iris noticed her looking that way and waved her hand towards her in a calling gesture. Surprised, she pointed to herself and mouthed 'me?' and Iris nodded enthusiastically. Amala shrugged and went to the table and sat down right between Severus and Iris –that was the only spear chair-.  
  
"How've you been?" Iris asked. "Have you been practicing?"  
  
"Oh, yeah" Amala replied with a grin. That afternoon when Iris had called her at her office they had had the chance to befriend each other and iris had told her that Naranesh had decided for Iris to be her teacher for a while. So, the beautiful teacher had taught her a few 'light techniques'.  
  
She remembered Iris's small speech at the beginning: As a being on the path of pure light, your path will be more difficult than the others, much more difficult, but the repayment is much greater. There are very few things you can do to help yourself on this path, it is rather about the inner attitude regarding the world. However, in order to increase your power and energy, there are certain 'techniques' you can use. You will learn about breath and how it can help you evolve, about colors and sounds. You will learn of love and devotion. And you must understand that by abandoning yourself to the real source of love and wisdom, you will get to be more powerful than nearly anybody else. Naranesh... she is human, but she became a goddess. That is the power of the light path. The power of keeping all darkness away by mere presence  
  
The rest of the lesson, Iris had told her to practice being very attentive at every small gesture she did. Which was kind of fun, but maybe a bit difficult, more difficult than she had expected it to be.  
  
"Well, it's good to hear that" she said with a smile. "Sirius, aren't you going to ask me to dance?"  
  
"Why, yes, I will" the man replied and got up, bowing slightly. "Ahem, will you please dance with me?"  
  
"Certainly!" she replied with a chuckle and offered her hand to the handsome man who –for an unknown reason- smiled mischievously as she got up gracefully.  
  
Dumbledore smiled at Amala, his eyes twinkling and Minerva looked at her as if something would soon blow up and she was afraid of her. Severus had his cold mask on.  
  
"Excuse me, I'll go get some drinks" he said slowly and got up.  
  
"So, Mrs. Wright" McGonagall said, trying to start a conversation. "You are Romanian, right?"  
  
"Yes, madam" she replied with a smile.  
  
"Wright, quite an unusual name for a Romanian" the Professor said.  
  
"Oh, yes, it's not Romanian!" Amala said with a chuckle. "That's my dad's name, he's British, that's why I know English so well. My mother's Romanian though, her name is Rucsandra Tudoran. But of course I have my dad's last name"  
  
"Ah, I see" McGonagall said. "But how come you came to Hogwarts?"  
  
"Ah, my parents went to China with their dragon caretaking jobs and well, I could choose between going to a school in China –which really wasn't an option, since I don't speak Chinese- and coming to stay with my uncle, Bob Wright and learn at Hogwarts. Maybe I could have stayed in Romania, but there was nobody I knew still there and it wasn't a great school either... Magalia, you know it?"  
  
Dumbledore and McGonagall nodded.  
  
"Besides, there was the habit of students staying at home and only coming to school for courses, or they could stay at school, but most went home on weekends. It wasn't like Hogwarts, where you stay all the time, it was a regional school, most students lived close to it and they could ride a broom to school."  
  
"So, you decided to come to Hogwarts" McGonagall said.  
  
"Oh, yes, definitely better! I love it here!" Amala said. "I'll stay here next year, too, since I'm used to it, even if my parents go back to Romania in summer. They said that China is um... is horrible"  
  
"Really?" McGonagall said.  
  
"Yes" she replied. "Of course, going home would be a small problem, but not too great. I can Appa- airplane fly there"  
  
The girl gave small nod and a 'mhm' to go with it. She had a calm face and an 'everything will be fine' attitude, but inside she was biting her lip. She had nearly said she would Apparate home.  
  
Severus returned to them with two bottles of butterbeer, a bottle of mineral water, and a glass with something red in it. He put the mineral water in front of Minerva, the glass in front of Dumbledore and the two butterbeers in front of him and Amala, making her gap.  
  
"Butterbeer?" she asked, staring.  
  
"I consider it inappropriate for students to drink alcohol" Severus replied giving her a reproachful look.  
  
"I was thinking about you, sir" she muttered quietly, but loud enough for him to hear her.  
  
"I consider it inappropriate for me to drink alcohol when I might need to take care of idiotic students until morning" he replied.  
  
"In other words" Dumbledore said with a smile "he doesn't drink alcohol since he is a supervisor of this event"  
  
Amala chuckled to herself and poured some butterbeer into a clean, empty glass.  
  
"Do these glasses clean themselves?" she observed.  
  
"Yes" Dumbledore replied, his eyes twinkling. "It's one of my better ideas, you see... If students lose their glasses or switch tables, they don't need to worry since there are always clean glasses."  
  
"Unfortunately" Severus snorted "they clean themselves a little too often and it is enough for you to leave the table that they do so"  
  
Amala chuckled and Dumbledore replied, shaking his head:  
  
"Ah, yes, there is that problem..."  
  
She smiled and took a sip out of her butterbeer. She was right where she wanted to be: next to Severus, Harry and Luna surprisingly dancing, Hermione and Ron having fun together outside, Ginny and Draco sitting at the table, talking. And all this at Hogwarts. She missed some of her old friends, of course, but she had found others here and here she would stay, regardless of what her parents said.  
  
Because, of course they bugged her with going back home, to her old school and old house. Of course she'd go there... just that in the summer vacation. She wanted to see Mona again, her favorite aunt, almost her sister, not by age –she was older than Amala's mum- but by heart.  
  
Iris and Sirius returned from dancing and Sirius patted gently on Amala's shoulder, making her turn towards him.  
  
"Would you like to dance?" he asked.  
  
"Why, certainly" she replied, getting up and smiling.  
  
Severus looked at them with his cool mask on before he went back to his drink.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
"Ow, my foot!" Harry complained.  
  
"Look who's talking, I must have violet feet by now from bruises!" Luna chided.  
  
"That makes us even" he said with a huge smile and she chuckled.  
  
"Shall we go sit down?" Harry asked. "I'm getting quite hurt here"  
  
"Ok" she replied and they went to sit down at their table which had two other inhabitants, as they could see: Ginny and Draco.  
  
"Sorry, guys, Ron alert at our table" Ginny laughed and Harry looked to see her brother and Hermione at their table, arguing about something.  
  
"No problem" both he and Luna said. "You might need some reinforcements with Ron, though" Harry added. "For later"  
  
"Oh, yes..." Draco sighed. "By the way, Potter"  
  
Harry looked at the scene in front of him: Draco was leaning on his chair and had an arm over Ginny's shoulders. His face was serious and more... noble than usual.  
  
"Yes?" he asked.  
  
"I've talked to my father and I managed to pull some information out of him. Apparently, the Dark Lord wants the Green Flame Torch and is willing to go no matter how far for it" Draco said.  
  
"Yes, I got that part, too" Harry mumbled.  
  
"Where on Earth from?" Draco asked.  
  
"One of my Voldemort-dreams" Draco cringed at the word 'Voldemort' "I can see him then, what he's doing, know what he's thinking, feeling"  
  
"You do?" Draco asked. "It must be horrible"  
  
"It is" he replied.  
  
"Anyway, you should put the Torch somewhere very well-hidden, safe, where nobody's been for years and where the Dark Lord can't enter" Draco said, looking thoughtful.  
  
"That takes the Chamber of Secrets out of discussion" Ginny said. "If he ever were to get in Hogwarts, he'd have no problem going there... But it would be safe, since I don't think he'll ever get in the castle"  
  
"I'm not going back there" Harry said and shuddered. "It's been... four years, almost and I hate to think of what is down there. There are crashed boulders and... ugh"  
  
Draco saw Harry make a disgusted face and raised an eyebrow.  
  
"What?"  
  
"And a basilisk's dead and rotten body" Harry replied.  
  
"It's probably been eaten by rats until now" Draco said, making them both wear the same type of disgusted faces. "I mean, it probably was, right?"  
  
"Still, the thought of going back there is not appealing" Harry said slowly.  
  
"Right" Draco said and after about a minute said: "I know! How about the room you guys found? It's perfectly safe, nobody's ever heard of it, it's not underground, we can all easily get there, but he can not"  
  
"Good idea" Luna said. "So, you should move it then"  
  
Harry nodded to himself.  
  
"That, I will. That, I will."  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
The Ball had been, in many people's opinion, great and too short But at twelve o'clock precisely, Dumbledore sent them to bed and they all had to comply to the old mage's order. After a good night's sleep, Sirius Black went back to his house.  
  
This Saturday, a week after the events, he settled once again in his kitchen, watching Winky wash some dishes.  
  
"How are you today?" he asked her.  
  
"Very well, Mr. Black sir, very well" she replied with a huge smile. "Me is having somebody to serve, sir! Me is forever grateful!"  
  
"I'm happy for you" Sirius said with a small smile. "Have you fed Buckbeak?"  
  
"Yes, sir, I have" she sweetly replied. "And me has also cleaned up sir's dormitory!"  
  
"Thank you, Winky" he said and went to the library to get himself a book to read.  
  
He scouted across the bookshelves and picked up a magical history book which he had started reading some time before. At Hogwarts, he had always thought of the subject as being quite boring, but then of course, he had taken History classes with Binns! And Binns didn't teach history, he was history, even then. He had died during his seventh year and everybody had done a double take when instead oh their teacher entering the classroom by opening the door, he entered through the blackboard and didn't even seem impressed by the fact that he was no longer alive.  
  
But history was an interesting subject... especially when it came to the fun part, like battles and betrayals, it was like adventure stories sometimes. Of course, the years were completely useless for him, he read them just to find out in what times everything happened. It was interesting for example, to find out that once the King of France had been betrayed by Lucifer the Magical Councilor and that he had let in the castle a few murderers to slay the king. And that of course he had been discovered and the traitor was sent in exile by the king (who had said something along the line: "You have a bad faith, you are Badfaith!", which Badfaith was Malfoy). Now he could laugh his head off at that name. Seemed like the Malfoys had a bad and ugly history since then.  
  
And of course there were other fun stuff to read: like the history of the Chases –and the last chapter he had seen with his own eyes, that Chase girl at the battle becoming the queen of the long-gone kingdom of Fal'sil-. Yes, that was some history. Even involuntarily, the members of the family always chased after something.  
  
And then there were the usual gobbling rebellions that were fun to read since the author of the book was parodying every little thing that happened in the wars, seeming to like them nearly as much as all Binns' students did.  
  
He sighed to himself and started reading a passage on the Ghost War in the time of the Four Founders and mussed to himself that if there was no war that actually took place, they shouldn't have written about it. He shook his head and flipped through the book when Winky came quickly in the room.  
  
"Mister Black, sir, Shakelbolt sir needs to speak to you urgently! He's in the fireplace!"  
  
Sirius put his book down quickly and ran to the kitchen, where Kingsley's head was in the middle of the fire.  
  
"Sirius! We need help, now! It's all a trap! There's no Towers, of course, but there are about ten Death Eaters... Adrianov and Richard have been captured."  
  
"I'm coming, I'll call Tonks and Remus and we'll be joining you soon"  
  
"Ok" Kingsley said. "Say 'Bolivia Bar' in the floo, that's where I am"  
  
Sirius nodded and Kingsley disappeared just as he took his own floo powder and called the other two to him. After that, the three went to 'Bolivia Bar'. Kingsley was waiting for them at a table and as soon as he saw them, he called them to him quickly and said in one breath:  
  
"It wasn't Jack that sent that cassette. It was somebody else and it was a trap. We were searching for him and we found ourselves in the middle of a lot of Death Eaters. I managed to fight my way out of there, but the other two weren't so lucky."  
  
"So, we need to go get them!" Tonks said. "Ok, let's move it! Just say where."  
  
"I have this portkey" Kingsley said, showing them a sock. "Let's go"  
  
The four put their hands on the portkey and were transported for a long while before landing in the middle of a desert-like area.  
  
"California" Kingsley explained and the other three nodded. "Through here, quickly"  
  
They walked fast, nearly running, after Kingsley who led them towards a hill. He circled it before he made it to a door and whispered the unlocking charm. The door unlocked and swung open, letting them enter.  
  
"They went through here" Kingsley said and led them down the corridors.  
  
"How do you know?" Tonks asked, but he didn't reply, just whispering 'shh'.  
  
They followed him to a large door that he opened quietly. They entered a dark room and walked quietly through its middle. As they were pretty far away from the door, they heard a cold laugh and the lights opened, revealing about six or seven Death Eaters who shot disarming spells at them quickly. Sirius, Tonks and Remus fought back viciously, but soon they were tied up. Kingsley looked at them with unfocused eyes.  
  
"Thank you, Shakelbolt, for catching them for me" said one of the Death Eaters, the one with the cold laugh. "How kind of you"  
  
"Kings?" Tonks asked the man who was staring at her, glassy-eyed.  
  
"He won't reply unless I want him to" the Death Eater said, taking off his hood and mask, revealing his face and blond hair. And I don't want him to"  
  
"Lucius" Sirius spat and the man smiled wickedly.  
  
"I see you know my name, mutt" he said slowly.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
AN: Mwahahahahahaha! A CLIFF-HANGER! And it fits so nicely here... You know, just as I was writing this chapter that the plot finally decide to appear nicely in my head. bows Thanks to the big muse up there! whispers Go, muse!  
  
So, review guys. Let me put it this way to you:  
  
No reviews: update in a month  
  
Up to five reviews: update in two weeks  
  
Up to ten reviews: update in one week  
  
Up to twenty reviews: three days  
  
Twenty-five and beyond: Is tomorrow ok?  
  
I mean it! So, I'm off to write the next chap. See you!  
  
Oh, and also, I'd like to say that if you would like some things to be clearer, you should read my 'Four Founders' Hunt'. It's the beginning of everything, including this war and it explains what's up with the Chases and the kingdom that Jane Chase is queen of. Also, there will be a part at the beginning of Harry's seventh year that will be very much connected to that story. If you don't read it, it's no problem, you can still get the point, but there are some explanations about everything there.  
  
Thanks to:  
  
inu-kokoro: thanks! And I'm glad you like it enough to wait... Sincerely, I loved the part with the Grim, too! huge grin I have that scene in my mind right now, Iris saying she sees the grim and Harry mentally hitting his head against a wall.  
  
jgils: thanks! And here's more!  
  
Juli Black Potter: Well, I guess one of your questions is answered: yes, Sev Amala scene, but as much as I would have loved for them to kiss in front of everybody –I even wrote it!-, I realized that neither Severus nor Amala would really do that... And yes, I'll write about the second war, it's coming. The sequel aka Harry's seventh year is mostly about that.  
  
Tsusetsu: Thanks! For reading and reviewing and... and reading and reviewing again and saying nice things! Yes, I like 'Hotel California'... grins Also, the story will end... just not now! I don't know how, it keeps getting longer, but I don't mind. I like it. I love it! But there are only a few more chapters left. Then, the sequel will come...  
  
The Red Dragons Order: Yes, I was wondering where you had disappeared to. Thanks for reviewing! big goofy grin And I like Towers and his Master, too. mutteres And boy, are you gonna have a sur...stops Hmm, shouldn't have said that. Shouldn't have said that... 


	34. What He Planned and What Came Out

Disclaimer: Own NOTHING!  
  
Dedication: to the Red Dragon's Order (at the top of her lungs Long Live the Queen of Fanfiction! people stare Sorry...)  
  
Chapter 33: What He Planned and What Came Out  
  
Sunday morning, a week after the ball, Harry stared as an unknown black owl delivered him a letter. He picked it up and opened it just as the owl left.  
  
And as he opened it, his heart stopped beating for a second: he knew that handwriting. Yes, it had been four years ago that he had seen it first and last, yes, he had only seen a few lines written in that handwriting, but he knew it better than nearly any handwriting: it belonged to Tom Marvolo Riddle, alias 'I am Lord Voldemort' as he had so nicely put it, alias 'You- Know-Who', as the others has said. Now, why would Voldemort send him a letter. Had he hit himself on the head or something?  
  
He started reading it, his heart in his throat:  
  
"Potter,  
  
I am hereby announcing you that your precious godfather, Sirius Black as well as Nymphadora Tonks, Kingsley Shakelbolt, Remus Lupin, Richard Drum and Rasputin Adrianov are now my prisoners. As precious as their lives might be to me, I agree to make a trade and offer you both their lives and their freedom. In return I want the Green Flame Torch.  
  
If you wish to make the trade, come with it in the Forbidden Forest at 1 a.m. on the 3rd of June, fifty meters from the sign you will see at the edge of the Forest. If you do not wish to trade, you will find their bodies the next morning on the edge of the Forest.  
  
Signed:  
  
Lord Voldemort. "  
  
Harry gaped at the letter. Sirius was trapped! And he'd be killed if Harry didn't go there on the 3rd of June. That meant a weak after!  
  
"Harry, mate, what's wrong?" Ron asked and Harry showed him the letter.  
  
Ron read the name at the end and gaped.  
  
"For the love of God..." he said slowly. "You-Know-Who sent you a letter!"  
  
"Read it" Harry muttered darkly.  
  
Ron read it and his eyes widened.  
  
"What the-? He's got all these people! Who're Drum and Adrianov?" he asked, frowning.  
  
"They're Aurors" Hermione replied. Apparently, she had been reading over his shoulder.  
  
"How do you know?" Ron asked, intrigued.  
  
"Their names sometimes appear in the newspaper" she replied. "What do we do?"  
  
"We give him the Torch" Harry said reluctantly.  
  
"Give him the Torch? No way!" Hermione said and stared at Harry. "You're out of your mind!"  
  
"But then..."  
  
"Sorry to interrupt you, but you look like you've got a message from the Dark Lord" said a silky voice behind Ron and he turned to look at Draco Malfoy.  
  
"We... I mean, Harry did" Ron replied and Draco's eyes widened and he gaped.  
  
"For God's sake" he muttered and shook his head. "I was joking"  
  
Draco snatched the letter from Ron's hand and started reading it aloud.  
  
"Potter. Wow, that's warm. I am hereby announcing you that your precious godfather, Sirius Black, you know who your godfather is, don't you Potter? Thought so. as well as Nymph-Nymphadora Tonks, poor woman, she has a horrible name Kingsley Shakelbolt, Remus Lupin, what's the werewolf doing in this? Richard Drum and Rasputin Adrianov, great, Aurors! are now my prisoners. Shit, pardon me, but shit. As precious as their lives might be to me and I bet they are, Dark Lord, I bet they are, I agree to make a trade and offer you both their lives and their freedom Mhm. That sounds fun. In return I want the Green Flame Torch. Oh, triple shit. If you wish to make the trade, come with it in the Forbidden Forest at 1 a.m. on the 3rd of June great, you have to break the curfew, too, fifty meters from the sign you will see at the edge of the Forest. Wow, you'll see the sign, but no-one else will, huh? If you do not wish to trade, you will find their bodies the next morning on the edge of the Forest. Well, at least we can have a nice funeral if we don't make it, huh? Signed: Lord Voldemort Ugh, how can he sign with his name?!"  
  
The ones around Draco were gaping at him as he was reading and commenting Voldemort's letter.  
  
"So, Potter, what will you do?" the Slytherin asked.  
  
"Go talk to Dumbledore" Harry replied and took his letter back.  
  
"And if he says: let Black die, we need the Torch, you'll go ahead and get the mutt and the rest of the gang by yourself, huh?" Draco said. "That would make sure you wouldn't lose your reputation of the least obedient student around."  
  
Harry realized that of course he wouldn't listen to Dumbledore if he said that he should let Sirius and the others die. But he was sure the old mage wouldn't let them die. So, he went to the Head table and straight to Dumbledore, waving the letter in front of the Headmaster.  
  
"Sir, I received this letter five minutes ago" he said slowly and Dumbledore took it. The moment he saw the name at the bottom of the page, he let out an 'oh, my' and Severus Snape leaned over from his left to see what was written. He gaped slowly and then stared at Harry.  
  
"Mr. Potter, you are in trouble" he whispered to Harry who had a very bad feeling about this.  
  
After reading the letter several times, Dumbledore put it down in front of them and put his face in his hands.  
  
"What do we do, Severus?" he asked slowly.  
  
"I really doubt that giving the Torch to the Dark Lord would be a good idea" he replied. "But... letting them die would be a very bad tactical movement."  
  
Harry was just about to complain to himself that Snape was insensitive and rock-hearted, but he realized that the man had said that it was 'a very bad tactical movement' meaning that it would be even worse. However, Harry was there and he was not allowed to see that the Potion Master had a heart.  
  
"I shall think about this, Harry" Dumbledore said and Harry went back to his table where many people had gathered.  
  
"Come with me, Harry" Luna said, taking his hand and the others followed them as they walked out of the Great Hall. Everywhere, people had gathered, knowing that the great 'Boy-Who-Lived' had received a letter from the great 'Man-Who-Tried-To-Kill-Him'. From most tables, there were silent prayers that the former would soon be 'Teen-Who-Lived' and the latter 'Man-Who- Didn't'.  
  
Harry was led by Luna to the secret room in Hogwarts where he had put the Green Flame Torch in and he saw that there were nine other people there besides him: Jane, Mark, Hermione, Ron, Amala, Neville, Luna, Draco and Ginny. In other words, the exact formation that went to get Stoney the First. Or was it the Second? Anyway, it was really weird for all of them to be staying there again.  
  
Draco threw himself in an armchair and noticed:  
  
"There aren't enough seats here, we should have a couch or two"  
  
As if on command, the four armchairs turned into couches –making Draco lose his balance since he was sitting in one- and the table jumped aside.  
  
"Whoa!" he said, slightly gaping. "Is this normal?"  
  
"I don't think so" Hermione said, shaking her head. "The one who made this room must have been very powerful, everything is alive... Even that book!"  
  
"Yes" Draco muttered to himself and spread himself on half the couch. "Well, sit down, I have a plan! We can ponder about the weirdness of this situation later."  
  
"You already thought of something?" Ron asked disbelieving, but sat down, just like everybody else.  
  
"Yes, already, I'm a Malfoy, remember?" Draco said then snorted to himself. "Although I'm not sure if I should be this proud of my name anymore"  
  
He looked at the others, his blonde hair spiky and his grey eyes twinkling dangerously. He gave a small smile before he said deviously:  
  
"Well, it's a Slytherin plan... bet the Dark Lord has one of the type, too" A smile spread across his face. "But he won't expect you to have a Slytherin plan! Oh, no, he'll expect you to have a typically Hufflepuff-Gryffindor plan and to expect him to play fairly."  
  
Harry opened his mouth to say something, but Draco quieted him by raising his hand.  
  
"So, on to my plan!" he said and smiled deviously. "We want the prisoners and the Torch, right?"  
  
"Right" the others said slowly. Where was he going?  
  
"How about we keep them both?" Draco suggested. "The Dark Lord is quite uncomfortable with the Green Flame Torch since Harry can defeat him using it. If Harry carries the Torch, he won't dare attack him. However, the moment he lets go of it, he's lost, am I right? Because the Dark Lord won't agree on just letting Potter go"  
  
"But he has to, it's in the agreement" Neville said and Draco shook his head.  
  
"Definitely not! He said he'd let the prisoners go. Not Harry. He'll skin him alive" Draco replied with a frown and a look that said 'come on, how believing can you be?'  
  
Harry cringed, but Draco didn't notice it as he calmly spoke forward.  
  
"And it's not sure he'd let even the prisoners go. He might take the Torch, destroy it and kill everybody around with a bit of help from some trusty Death Eaters, maybe my father included. So, what's the solution?" he asked and smiled as if expecting them to jump up, giving the answer. However, nobody did so.  
  
"I have no clue" Neville muttered shaking his head slightly. Draco rolled his eyes and started speaking again.  
  
"I'm quite sure Dumbledore will send Harry backup so that he wouldn't be killed by the Dark Lord" he said with a false sigh and then started to grin as he said in a more and more excited tone: "But alas, the Dark Lord and Dumbledore will have no clue that there will be two back-up parties. One will make sure that Harry and the prisoners are safe and the second one will make sure the Torch will be back in our hands!"  
  
Draco punched the air, making the others stare.  
  
"Excuse me?" Ron said, gaping.  
  
"Weasel, don't you get it?!" Draco said, excited. "Dumbledore will concentrate on getting everybody safe out of the Forest. We will concentrate on getting the Torch back! Harry's the bloody bearer, he can summon it, for God's sake! The ten of us will take care of the Torch! And Harry will be able to use it against the Dark Lord enough for everybody to flee. Including himself! He'll retreat towards Hogwarts and the wards will keep the Dark Lord and the Death Eaters away. Besides, Dumbledore will be there to help. It can't be another battle, there's no way the Dark Lord will be there with a huge army! So basically, we'll be safe and so will the Torch. All we have to do is get You-Know-Who to let go of the prisoners and everything will be fine!"  
  
The others stared at him and Ron muttered:  
  
"Good plan, mate". Then, he frowned. "But how do we get there without Dumbledore and his party and You-Know-Who and his party seeing us?"  
  
"Ah, that's your problem" Draco said. "You're the tactical genius, I've heard of the great chess that you play. Think of anything, Granger will help us put it in practice. Potter will have to hold his head on his shoulders and duel the Dark Lord, that's enough on his shoulders. Ginny will be the second in command, she's a great leader. Wright will have to talk to the Professors to get them to retreat to Hogwarts. Longbottom, do you know any small plants that might attack the Dark Lord?"  
  
"Yes, but how will we get them there?" he asked.  
  
"Well, it's up to Mark Evans with transportations, I heard he's particularly good with levitation charms, he can even transport many objects in the same time. Lovegood, you and Chase can easily create images of not-proved-to-exist creatures, right?"  
  
"Right" the two replied. "I could show her how they look like" Luna added, dreamily.  
  
"And I could transfigure some things to look like those creatures..." Jane said thoughtfully. "It'll take time, though, I'm good at Transfigurations, but I'm not McGonagall"  
  
"And then we could levitate them to the place where Harry will meet You- Know-Who!" Luna said with a grin.  
  
"No, no!" Ron said. "I've a better idea!"  
  
The others stared at him as he said, turning red:  
  
"How quick can you transfigure them?"  
  
"I don't know... It might take a whole hour to do one creature" Jane replied, frowning.  
  
"How about if we put them in the Forest and covered them with leaves and maybe earth and then, when You-Know-Who comes, we could uncover them!" Ron suggested. "And we could take some plants all over the Forest, too"  
  
"I know a flew plants that can move on small distances" Neville said with a frown. "If I carry a bit of meat behind me, I'll end up with some killers behind me.  
  
"That's the spirit!" Draco said and got up. "Move it, people, we only have a week! Me and Ginny will help with whatever we can, I'll brew potions to defeat these idiots and she'll help transfigure and all that. Potter, maybe you should help with those things, too. Granger, make Weasley's plans work!"  
  
They all nodded and split up, Ginny, Jane and Luna going to gather whatever useless objects they could find to transfigure into things that looked like creatures, Ron was starting to shoot ideas at Hermione who was writing them down on paper, Neville had ran off to the greenhouses –where he had permanent access granted by Sprout- to take some plants and to convince them to breed. Draco and Amala had run off to brew potions and Harry was helping Luna and co. to get useless objects. Hey went outside to pick up flowers and tree branches and twigs, making others stare at them, but they didn't care.  
  
All in all, it would be a hard week.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
"So, Albus, what do we do?" Minerva asked. All the teachers were in the staff room and were awaiting for the Headmaster to tell them what they should do.  
  
"Well, there is a problem" Albus said and shook his head.  
  
"Really?!" Severus sarcastically said. "And I who thought everything was sunny and happy!"  
  
Albus speared him a glance before he looked back to the other teachers, continuing as if there had been no interruption whatsoever.  
  
"Well, unfortunately, Voldemort" a few of the teachers moaned in complain at his continuous use of that name "-is not going to play fair"  
  
Severus rolled his eyes at that. Really?! How did he figure that out?  
  
"He will probably try to get hold both of the Torch and Harry" Dumbledore continued. "But he is afraid of the Torch whenever somebody is carrying it. So, as long as Harry holds it, there will be no problem. The problem will come when he will have left the Torch out of his hand. Then, all hell will break loose."  
  
'Really subtle, Albus, that will make them feel calm and ready to think straight' Severus thought to himself hoping that for once the Headmaster would use Legilimency to read his thoughts that cried of 'stop babbling!'  
  
As suspected, all teachers cringed and shifted uncomfortably in their seats. All except Minerva, Flitwick, Severus and Iris. And of course, Albus, but that didn't count.  
  
"Therefore, we must have a plan and I daresay we should include the Order of the Phoenix in this, shall we? My plan is that we make a hidden escort for Harry when he goes into the Forest. I will make sure that Voldemort" some cringed and the others sighed helplessly "is occupied and will not have time to kill the prisoners. However, I am afraid I cannot interfere so that he won't destroy the Torch quickly. I need to stay away from him so that he cannot notice me and I will never make it in time. But you will be there, make sure the prisoners are safe... and Harry."  
  
Severus sighed.  
  
"We'll make sure we'll do that, Albus" he said slowly. "But if he gets in the battle, there will be many deaths"  
  
"He will be preoccupied by destroying the Torch" Albus said. "He won't get into battle, but he will make sure there will be quite a few Death Eaters around him, fighting against the ones protecting the prisoners. We'll have to get them out of there quickly"  
  
"Very well, Albus" Severus said.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Back in the hidden room, Harry, Hermione, Draco and Ron were thinking of strategies for getting in the Forest. Harry was pacing, Hermione was sitting thoughtful on an armchair, Ron was lying on a couch, thinking and Draco had a huge book in his arms.  
  
"Will the sign be there at 1 a.m. or will you have to get there at 1 a.m.?" Hermione asked.  
  
"I have to be there at 1 a.m." Harry replied.  
  
"Hmm" she said slowly to herself. "But it will probably be there for at least half an hour, right? To make things safe for the guy who gets there, right?"  
  
"I guess so" Harry replied and Ron beamed and jumped up and down.  
  
"I know! I've got it!" he said. "There will be nine of us, right?"  
  
"Right!" Harry replied.  
  
"Wonderful! We can sit at the top of the West Tower, nobody really goes there!" Ron said. "With broomsticks, I mean. We'll of course have to teach Mark and Neville to ride, but it won't be a problem"  
  
"It will, actually" Draco said with a laugh. "Ok, who's training them in basic flying skills?"  
  
"I will" Harry answered. "Hermione? Do you need help with flying?"  
  
"Maybe" she thoughtfully said. "But how will we get in the Forest unnoticed?"  
  
"How about turning ourselves invisible?" Ron proposed. "I mean, it would help? And silencing charms! Yeah! 'Mione?"  
  
"Um... I don't know and invisibility charms that would work fine... They're not easy to do, you know?" Hermione said. "But maybe I could find something..."  
  
"I know something...the Disillusionment charm!" Harry said. "Moody used it on me last year when they rescued me from the Dursleys"  
  
"Right... I'll go check on that one" Hermione replied and started looking through the books in the library. "If I can't find anything here, do you think I'll find something in the Room of Requirement?"  
  
"Maybe" Draco replied, sticking his nose back in the book.  
  
"What are you reading there, anyway?" Harry asked, frowning.  
  
"I'm not quite sure, the thing doesn't have a title" Draco replied. "But it's quite fun to read, actually. Something about hexes and charms, you should see! tones of them. I'm currently trying to find some efficient and simple ones."  
  
Harry walked over to Draco and stared at the pages that had moving pictures on them.  
  
"This one is nice" the blond said. "How about we use it? I mean, our enemies will be quite pissed at being trapped in balls..."  
  
But Harry had another thing in mind. He stared at the spell right below that one.  
  
"Remember our second year? The dueling class?" Harry asked.  
  
"Yes, quite well actually" Draco replied and stared at Harry. "But you should know, the Dark Lord is also a Parselmouth, so that won't work"  
  
"What if it does?" Harry asked. "Use the spell, will you?"  
  
Draco stood up, took out his wand and, under the surprised eyes of Ron and Hermione, cried:  
  
"Serpensortia!"  
  
A snake shot out of his wand, making Hermione cry out in surprise and Harry stared at it and hissed.  
  
-You!-  
  
-Yessssss?- the cobra asked.  
  
-I need your help- Harry hissed. -Would you like to help me, hmsssssss?-   
  
-Yesss- it replied, staring at him confusedly.  
  
-But you mussssssst promissssse not to help another- Harry hissed. -Do you promisssssse?-  
  
-Yessss!- it said and stared at him confused.  
  
-I need you to help me fight againsssssst a ssssssnake sssspeaker and hissssss ssssservantsss, human ssservantsssss. Willing?-  
  
-Yessss- the cobra replied and looked at him, measuring him up and down.  
  
-I'll give you command of an army then, rightsssssssssss?- Harry said, smiling at the snake and thinking about his idea.  
  
-Yessssss- the cobra said, seeming to smile and to finally understand something.  
  
-And I will offer you micsse to eat, say twenty to you, ten to the otherssssss, alright?- Harry said, suddenly struck by inspiration.  
  
-You have yourssself a deal- it replied, for the first time not saying 'yes'.  
  
-Great! I'll give you half sssssoon, before we fight and the other half after, rightssssss?-  
  
-Yessss, ssire, you have a deal!- the cobra replied and nodded happily.  
  
-But until then, pleasssse don't hurt anyone, rigthss?- Harry asked.  
  
-Of courssse!- it said with a true snake smile.  
  
Harry beamed at the others.  
  
"Well, we might need some mice to feed our new snake army, under the command of this cobra" he said and the others smiled happily. "We'll feed them ten mice per snake and this wonderful commander twenty. Half now, half after and they won't betray us"  
  
"Well, Potter, seems like we'll be summoning mice" Draco said with a sigh. "No problem"  
  
Hermione looked thoughtful at them before she waved her wand and muttered something, a huge glass empty aquarium appearing.  
  
"You can gather them in this" she said with a sigh. "I don't like the idea of killing so many mice, but I don't think it would be killing them if we summon them"  
  
Harry and Draco smiled at each other and Harry started summoning mice while Draco was summoning snakes.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Amala was going down the corridors of Hogwarts to meet Severus. She had to find out what Dumbledore's plans were. And she was quite sure he would have a few suggestions.  
  
She knocked on the door and heard a quiet 'enter' from inside. She opened the door, entered as quietly as a mouse and closed the door behind her.  
  
"Hello, Severus" she said slowly.  
  
"Amala!" he said with a sigh. "I'm sorry to say I'm quite busy at the moment, but..."  
  
"I'm quite busy at the moment, too" she said quickly. "But this isn't a pleasure visit"  
  
She decided to go straight with the whole thing... well, as straight as she could.  
  
"No?" he said, then mentally scolded himself. Of course she would be worrying for Potter!  
  
"No, Sev. Actually, I was wondering what Albus had in mind for these events" she said slowly. "It's quite a difficult problem..."  
  
Her voice got quieter and quieter, but Severus could hear her and he let out a concerned sigh.  
  
"He will be there, but I don't think –and neither does he, as a matter of fact- that the Torch will make it. It is one of the greatest problems we have, it is an ancient magical object, we cannot allow it to be destroyed, but we cannot allow the captives to die. I do believe the Torch will be destroyed, we have no good plan to save both it and the captives. Old man, if he would just... I don't know" Severus trailed off.  
  
"But he has the prisoners safe, right? They will be safe, right?" Amala said worriedly.  
  
"Yes, they will, but you do not seem to understand" Severus said, annoyed. "The Green Flame Torch is going to be destroyed and I would give nearly anything for it not to be! The value of the Torch is very great, we cannot let such a powerful magical object disappear like that!"  
  
Amala noticed him starting to snap at her and she smirked.  
  
"Oh, really?" she asked.  
  
"Don't you understand?!" he said desperately.  
  
"Actually, I do" she replied with a small chuckle. "You're worried about the Torch! That's the spirit! So, are you positive the prisoners are safe?"  
  
"The Order will do all that is possible" Severus snapped. Foolish girl, to think he had actually believed her to be an intelligent understanding young woman? She didn't get it...  
  
"Good!" she said. "Listen, I need some potions. Freezing potions and smoking potions. Do you have such things or can you brew them?"  
  
"I can brew them, but what for?" Severus asked, intrigued.  
  
"Well, we had the very same feelings about the Torch ourselves, so we'll be the ones in charge of protecting it. Of course, the Order will take care of the prisoners and we'll try to keep the Death Eaters... happy by attacking them with freezing potions, spells, making them think that they're surrounded by mystical creatures and oh, yeah, an army of snakes!" Amala said, counting the means of attacking the Death Eaters on her fingers. "But we need somebody to get the prisoners safe –and I think that's your job- and we need free hand. They won't be expecting us, we'll come as a surprise. Harry will summon the Torch as soon as possible and after that, he'll probably stall Voldemort-"  
  
Severus cringed badly and nearly slapped her for saying the name in front of him, but he stopped himself from doing it.  
  
"-until Dumbledore comes!" she continued, sighing to herself. "So basically, we'll have both the prisoners and the Torch. But I need you to do me a favor: convince the Professors and prisoners to get the hell out of there and leave us there, we'll be ok."  
  
Severus sighed to himself.  
  
"You're crazy" he said slowly.  
  
"I know, but give us a shot" she replied with a small smile.  
  
"Very well, but there's one thing you should know" Severus said slowly. "The Dark Lord himself is a Parselmouth, he'll have no trouble in getting the snakes on his side"  
  
"We hope he'll think that, too" she replied and smiled at him. "Actually, Harry promised them mice as a repayment for helping us and I don't think Voldemort will promise them anything"  
  
"Stop saying the name!" Severus said loudly, his face becoming quite angry. "Stop it!"  
  
Amala held her breath as he did that. Then, she said slowly and with a guilty and sorry face:  
  
"Ok, I never knew how much it really hurt you" she said slowly. "Forgive me?"  
  
"Yes" he replied, calmer. "But don't. ever. do. that."  
  
Amala nodded slowly.  
  
"Never again..." she said and added to herself 'until you can stand it'. "But please help us, Severus."  
  
"Alright" he replied and smiled at her. Why did teens and even kids have better ideas than the mature and experienced? Well, he'd join them. Just one more thing... "Who's in this?" he asked.  
  
"Me, Ron, Hermione, Harry, Ginny Weasley, Jane Chase, Mark Evans, Luna Lovegood, Draco Malfoy, Nev-"  
  
"Draco Malfoy?!" Severus asked, surprised. "But he's a Slytherin!"  
  
"Yeah, we noticed" she laughed. "He came up with the plan!"  
  
"And what about Chase and Evans? Aren't they first years?"  
  
"Yes, but they're good" Amala replied. "And remember, Jane will be a queen soon"  
  
Severus took a deep breath. Yes, the queen of the Fal'sil was... twelve years old. Unbelievable.  
  
"Who else?" he asked.  
  
"Neville Longbottom" she replied and smiled.  
  
"He'll blow you up!" Severus said, surprised. "I should know, I teach him!"  
  
Amala snorted.  
  
"No, he won't! He's much better with charms and hexes than at Potions and don't forget, he's great at Herbology. He's just working on trying to convince some plants to grow faster than usual and he will be in charge of the plant domain"  
  
"Hmm" Severus said. "I guess I can go along with this plan of yours... So, I'll help with the captives and with getting them and the rest out of there. Got it"  
  
"Perfect. Thanks for helping, Sev, you made my job a lot easier" she said with a smile and walked towards the door. "I'm happy we can count on you"  
  
"You're welcomed" he replied and went to the fireplace, taking some floo powder. "Take care of yourself"  
  
"I will" she replied and opened the door, hearing him say behind her "the Apothecary, Diagon Alley!". Yes, she had made a good decision by telling him about the plan. And if she hadn't, then... 'obliviate' would have worked, no?  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
And soon enough, the week of preparations was over and the two parties –Dumbledore's and Draco-Harry's- were ready for what they had planned. Well, almost ready. Dumbledore was polishing his broomstick and hoping he'd had a Firebolt instead of a Nimbus 1999. Maybe he should sell the one he had now and buy a Firebolt? He had no more time to do that.  
  
To nearly everybody's surprise, Hermione and Neville were taking flying lessons along with Mark Evans –he supposedly wanted to make the team next year and the other two were nervous and wanted to do something to calm them or at least take their minds off Sunday night-. Dumbledore had noticed that, but he completely understood the two of Harry's friends, they didn't have Pensives. As for Mark, well, the kid had tried to fly during the year... Now he was coached by Harry, who was surprisingly calm.  
  
In the other party, the preparations were ore intense than anyone had thought they would be. Nobody went to History of Magic, for one. Then, the snakes had reached the wonderful number of 200 –which meant 2000 mice, to everybody's despair, so everybody was summoning mice-. The 'mystical creatures' were spread all around the Forbidden Forest and Hermione had triple checked that they would appear when they would be hit with 'scourgify'.  
  
Draco and Amala had made tones of potions which were bottled up in conjured vials. Amala smirked to herself knowing that Severus would also come with his share.  
  
Also, Hermione was practicing the Disillusionment Charm on Jane and Mark who were grumbling at being disillusioned and un-disillusioned so many times.  
  
But on Saturday night, everybody was finished doing their job and the snakes had been fed with half the mice and would be waiting in the Forest for the enemy to come. Their leader had turned out to be a tactical genius and would be waiting for Harry to exit the castle, then he would summon all the snakes through telling his subordinates about the coming. Soon, the snake population would be close to the Torch Bearer.  
  
So, there they were, on Saturday, at ten o'clock at night, nearly all falling with tiredness since they had had a bad day. The couches in the secret room looked more cozy than ever.  
  
"Ahem" Amala said. "Tonight we should all have a good sleep!"  
  
"You try it, with the battle tomorrow night!" Jane said. "It's not possible"  
  
"Two words" she said, smiling broadly: "Sleeping Draughts"  
  
Draco grinned at her. Yep, she was bright, he had managed to realize that. Well, he'd had been surprised if she were an idiot, Severus Snape would never go out with an idiot.  
  
"So, this way" he continued "everybody has a very nice sleep. And I mean everybody."  
  
"So" Ginny continued "we'll be fighting at our best tomorrow! We've got everything ready and... think about all of this as a huge game where we have many advantages and it's nearly impossible to lose. No need to panic, but... CONSTANT VIGILANCE!"  
  
All of them flinched at her loud cry.  
  
"Great, Ginny, you remind me of Moody" Harry said. "The fake one"  
  
"Sorry, but I made my point, right?" she asked and grinned. "Good! Off to bed and don't wake up until ten o'clock tomorrow morning, we need you fresh tomorrow!"  
  
"The whole thing will be at 1 a.m.!" Neville said. "We'll be tired by then!"  
  
"That's why you can sleep all you want tomorrow morning and try to keep yourselves fresh, k?" she said. "Off to bed!"  
  
They all groaned, grabbed their Sleeping Draughts and went to bed.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
To say that Sunday was one of the longest days in existence was a complete understatement. The students walked around doing nothing except discussing Harry's letter and the prisoners and how he would manage to make it alive out of that. Professors could be seen sighing all the time. Snape was snappy, even more than usual. Harry was somewhat calm and was playing a game of chess with Draco in the secret room –"I always lose when I play with Ron"-. But the pieces were complaining that the two weren't attentive.  
  
The cobra that was the leader of Harry's snake army was slithering up and down in the room nervously.  
  
-You sssure we will win?- it asked Harry suddenly and Draco gaped at it.  
  
-Possitive- Harry replied. -But it'ssss not about winning or losssing, we will ssssurely win, it'sss about getting the prissonersss back, ssssee?-   
  
-If you ssssay ssssso- it said slowly.  
  
"What's it saying? What's it saying?" Draco asked looking at them.  
  
"It asked whether it's sure we'll win and I said yes, that it was not whether we win or lose, because we will win, but it's about getting the prisoners back" Harry carelessly replied. "Check!"  
  
Draco looked at the board and moved a piece.  
  
"Check mate!" Harry grumbled at that, muttering something along the line of 'another chess master, my luck'. "How about we tell it that the mice are assured, no matter what?"  
  
"I guess we could do that" Harry replied and Draco's eyes lit up at a sudden idea.  
  
"I know! I've got it! Tell it that whatever the other snake-speaker offers, we plus with three mice! And that we give the same fee to any snake that might pass by, even if it's not in the army" Draco said, grinning. "Just in case the Dark Lord has his own army"  
  
Harry grinned and called the cobra.  
  
-Lisssten, in casse the other sssnake sssspeaker offersss you something to join him, we plusss three micssse, no matter what it issss, alright? And the same fee to any sssnake that issss around or that he hasss!-  
  
-You are very kind, ssssir? How come?- it asked.  
  
-Well, becaussse I'm on the light sssside and we are trying to make everybody happy, asss much asss posssible. All the good creaturesss and people, sssee?- Harry said in a burst of inspiration -The dark sssside ssssays many, and keepss itsss word, but takesss back a lot more than it givesss-  
  
The cobra looked at him and nodded its head slowly.  
  
-I ssee- it replied.  
  
"What's it saying? What's it saying?!" Draco asked, pleading Harry.  
  
"It said we were nice and why it's so and I said it's because we're on the light side and that we want all that is best for everybody and that the dark side promises much and gives much, but takes more than it gives" he replied quickly. "And now I'll ask it what its name is, so that we can talk to each other easier"  
  
Draco nodded quickly and put himself in a comfortable position.  
  
-What isss your name?- Harry asked.  
  
-Name, sssir?- it asked, a bit surprised. -Bujanca they call me. I don't know why they calledss me that, it meansss 'cobra' in Sssanssskrit. And you are Harry, rightsss?-  
  
-Yesss- Harry replied and then frowned. -But how do you knowss?-  
  
-Ah, I, sssir, I underssstand human English, ssir- it replied with a chuckle and Harry made a face.  
  
"What's it saying? What's it saying?!" Draco asked, fro the third time.  
  
"That it understands English. And its name is Bujanca. It means snake in Sanskrit" Harry replied.  
  
"Really?" Draco asked. "And now, now, what's it saying?"  
  
"It's not saying anything, it's laughing" Harry replied and Draco made a face.  
  
"Well, then, Bujanca..." Draco said slowly. "Do all summoned snakes have intelligence and all that? I've been wondering about the things we summon..."  
  
The cobra stared at him and then replied slowly:  
  
-Yess, they do. You sssee, the sssummoned sssnakess have a ssoul, like real onesss. Becaussse when you sssummon a ssnake, there are many ssnake ssoulsss that want to come... But if the ssummoned one is vanissshed away, the ssoul will wander around again. But we much prefer to live, yesss. It iss interesssting to sssee that humanss can't be vanisshed away like ssummoned animalsss. But you can't sssummon humansss either-  
  
Draco stared at the cobra until it finished speaking and then Harry took a deep breath to start translating. Just then, though, Hermione, Amala and Ginny entered the room.  
  
"Hi, guys! What's up?" Ginny asked as everybody else said hello.  
  
"Well, Harry here was just about to translate what the cobra had said about why summoned snakes have a soul and all that" Draco replied and stared intently at Harry.  
  
"'The cobra' has a name, its name is Bujanca" Harry said and smiled.  
  
"Its name?" Amala said. "What about 'its' gender?"  
  
Bujanca laughed again, making the others stare at her.  
  
"It understands English" Harry explained.  
  
-I am male- the cobra said and laughed again.  
  
"And it says that it's a male" he added.  
  
"Bujanca doesn't sound like a very manly name" Draco snorted.  
  
-Hey, busssster, may I remind you you're called Malfoy, hmsss?- Bujanca replied in a mock-hurt voice.  
  
"He asked you if you need to be reminded that your name is Malfoy" Harry said, seeing the odd stares that Bujanca was receiving.  
  
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean!" Draco asked, hitting the air with his fist. "So, what did he say about the soul thing, huh?"  
  
"He said that there are snake souls waiting and they come when a snake is summoned. And he said that they go back when they are vanished, but they prefer to stay alive. He also said that it is impossible to summon humans or to vanish humans" Harry replied and took a deep breath since he had said that in nearly one breath.  
  
"That's something to remember" Hermione said. "Hey, Bujanca, do you think that after this is all over you could tell us some things about snake habits and knowledge?"  
  
All the others stared at her as she smiled to the cobra sheepishly.  
  
-I guesssss I could- it replied kindly.  
  
"He said he could" Harry said smiling at his very red friend.  
  
"Thanks" Hermione said and Bujanca opened his mouth to say something, but then shot a glance at Harry and turned back to Hermione and gave a small nod.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Nine teens were on the top of the West Tower at 12:15 at night. Hermione was just casting Disillusionment Charms over them and Draco was telling them again and again how they had to split up at first, travel low and fast so they wouldn't be seen from the forest and reunite at the funny-looking tree at the entrance of the Forest. From there, Draco would lead and, so he could be seen by everybody, he would carry a black rag at his broomstick. The signal for attacking was his wolf cry –they had double checked there was no full moon so there would be no werewolf problems with that one- and then, Bujanca would summon the snakes, Mark and Amala would uncover the summoned things that looked like mystical creatures –'don't know what they are, can't fight back, right?'- and everybody else would attack all they could. Neville had already received his task of carrying and using some even better plants than they had had in mind at first: seeds that would instantly grow large when they were wetted with special potions...  
  
Hermione finished tapping them with her wand and she was quite pleased at herself. Draco had managed to establish the routes.  
  
"Look, the sign!" said a voice, probably Luna's.  
  
Indeed, a small candle had appeared at the edge of the Forest and somewhere down there, Harry had slowly started walking towards it.  
  
"12:30" Draco said. "Ok, guys, move it. We meet at the funny shaped tree, right? Ginny, you first, take the right route. Neville second, the left. Amala third, the right, Mark fourth, the left..."  
  
He said it making slow pauses between calling out their names and all they could see were broomsticks flying through the air and quickly managing to get to less than two meters from the ground. The Order was nowhere to be seen and Draco's greatest fear was that they could see the booms before they reached the forest's edge or worse, one of them would crash in an order member.  
  
After everyone had left, he waited for a second before going down on his broom also, diving to merely a meter off ground and going straight for the funny-shaped tree.  
  
"Everybody here?" he whispered. "Ginny?"  
  
"Yes"  
  
"Amala"  
  
"Over here"  
  
"Neville  
  
"Here, Draco"  
  
"Mark"  
  
"Yep"  
  
"Jane"  
  
"Just made it"  
  
"Luna"  
  
"Mhm"  
  
"Ron?"  
  
"Yes"  
  
"Hermione"  
  
"Over here"  
  
"So that's all. We ready?"  
  
"Yes" said a few voices.  
  
"Follow me then and don't get lost"  
  
Although it was weird for everybody to follow a broomstick with a rag attached and which had air moving slightly above it as it would over fire –due to the nature of the Disillusionment Charm- they complied and soon they made it to the floating candle. As planned before, Draco quietly flew over the trees of the Forbidden Forest until he thought there were about forty meters and then he slowly, even slower than a man would walk, he went through the branches of the trees, low enough to see what was down there.  
  
And then he saw it. A sickening sight: ten Death Eaters and seven tied up men in a circle with the Death Eaters on the outer side. And of course, in front of them, stood the Dark Lord himself, dressed in his black robes, but he wasn't hooded and masked. Instead, Draco could see his extremely white skin and his red snake-like eyes. He understood quickly that Harry had not made it there yet.  
  
He saw the other broomsticks also hover over the group of eighteen below and his mind thought quickly about weirdly, mathematics. He nearly snorted to himself, but decided not to, though. But he really thought it was funny that he thought that three times six was eighteen and that six-six-six was the devil's number. He shook his head and concentrated on what would happen below. But where was Potter?  
  
It seemed like one of the Death Eaters was thinking along the same lines.  
  
"Maybe he won't come" she said slowly.  
  
"He will come, Bella" the Dark Lord replied darkly. "He is a true idiot, like only a Gryffindor can be and he will try to save his friends... and even those who he doesn't know"  
  
"But let me kill one of them. For him being late" Bella said. "This one, the one I killed before"  
  
"No, Bella" he replied and turned to glare at her. "He is the main part of this. The boy wants him more than he does anybody."  
  
Bella made an unpleased sound before she settled down to where she was before. They waited for two more minutes before a green light started coming in the Forest. Nobody else could, but Draco saw that the Dark Lord's eyes suddenly got wider in fear and that he wasn't comfortable at all.  
  
Soon, the Green Flame Torch and its bearer, Harry, that was, were face to face with the Dark Lord.  
  
"Give me the Torch, boy, or they die" the snake-like man said.  
  
"Release them and I give you the Torch" Harry replied.  
  
"Oh, no, no, no, boy!" the Dark Lord said, giving a small laugh. "So that then you can attack me?"  
  
"Then, remove the ropes from them and I pass you the Torch. The moment the Torch reaches your hand, they are allowed to go unharmed" Harry said, a green light flickering in his eyes, making him look noble and terrifying.  
  
"Very well" the other replied with a deadly smile. "Remove the ropes!"  
  
The Death Eaters complied and all the captives got on their feet, ready to run.  
  
"Now, the Torch, boy!" he spat in his horrible laugh and Harry pointed his wand at the Torch and slowly lifted it off the ground before he floated it towards Voldemort, who was three meters away.  
  
Everybody stared at the Torch that was floating and when it reached the Dark Lord's hand, the captives ran at top speed toward the direction from which Harry had come from, but making sure they weren't too close to the evil mastermind.  
  
The Dark Lord smiled a horrible smile at seeing the Torch in his hands and he cried:  
  
"Kill them!"  
  
That was the signal for everybody. Draco howled loudly, making Voldemort look up at the moon for a second, losing precious time. The Order of the Phoenix seemed to appear out of nowhere, but they were actually throwing off their Invisibility Cloaks. Harry summoned the Torch with all his power and the Dark Lord gave a cry at losing it just when he was about to do something to it with his wand.  
  
The Order got the captives under cover and switched to defensive, but the nine in the trees were quite offensive and they were shooting all they could at the Death Eaters. Everywhere, weird creatures appeared and some plants started falling on the ground, growing as quickly as possible.  
  
The Dark Lord laughed however and hissed and a lot of snakes appeared, but before he knew it, he was the one attacked by the snakes and not his enemies.  
  
But he smiled wickedly and raised his wand and cried out something Draco couldn't understand. The next thing he knew was that he crushed two meters on a cold floor, no more broom, no more Forest, just a huge cold and dark room.  
  
He quickly understood that the Dark Lord had taken them to his castle, where he had more of an advantage and he realized that there were indeed about forty Death Eaters around. The snake-man summoned the Torch to himself and laughed in Harry's face –he had twenty wands pointed at him, just in case- and also told his servants that there were nine more people in the room and they were to find them and tie them up.  
  
Then, he left out of the room, the Torch in his hand and the Death Eaters noticed their shapes and took them down. If it hadn't been for the fall, Draco would have fought back... But now, he was too hurt.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
AN: What, you thought they'd win? –for a second there, so did I- Unfortunately, Voldemort has a few tricks up his sleeve... :-)))  
  
Remember the reviews thing? It still stands! So, guys, you have plenty of reasons to review. See you soon, take care, enjoy hot summer and all that. Love y'all.  
  
To:  
  
Inu-kokoro: Thanks! I really liked the Draco-Ginny pairing when I first read about it, so I said to myself: "Well, why not?!" And I'm posting... Promised I would, didn't I?  
  
Tsuetsu: Thanks! I'm really glad that my writing skills are getting better... In fact, that's why I started writing. That and the obvious obsession for Harry Potter, of course! And thanks for the review on my other story!  
  
Krystal: Thanks and I'm glad you like my story! As for the reviews part... well, the deal's working so far, isn't it? ;-)  
  
Rhys Hiscock: No, Kingsley isn't a Death Eater. He just happened to be on the wrong side of an Imperius Curse from Lucius. Thanks for the review!  
  
Gochan Son: Thanks! And I promise I will!  
  
Other chapters:  
  
I'm not the weakest link: Thanks! Glad you like it!  
  
Harryp/charmedfreak: I'm glad you like it and I'm sorry for the Snape Amala, but I really enjoy writing it, so I'm afraid it stays. Sorry about that. But you will see why it's there in the sequel –yes, there will be a sequel. I don't intend on killing Voldemort right now-. 


	35. The Price of Life

Disclaimer: Own nothing...  
  
Dedication: To the Red Dragons Order  
  
Chapter 34: The Price of Life  
  
"Wise men said just raise your head and reach out for the spell. Find the door to the promise land, just believe in yourself. Hear this voice from deep inside, it's the call of your heart. Close your eyes and you will find there your doubt of the dark.  
  
Here I am, will you send me an angel? Here I am, in the land of the morning star..."  
  
Scorpions-"Will you send me an angel?"  
  
/-/-/--/-/-/-/-  
  
Harry, Ron, Draco, Hermione, Amala, Ginny, Mark, Jane, Neville and Luna were trapped there, wandless, tied up. The room was dark and wet, a true Slytherin-type prisoner room. Great! How much better could he get? The Green Flame Torch was in Voldemort's hands or maybe even destroyed by now. The dark wizard had left with it, telling his servants to tie the prisoners up. Then, Wormtail had come and told the Death Eaters where to put the prisoners until the Torch would be destroyed and told them to leave only two guards, which would be enough.  
  
"We need help" Harry said quietly to himself, so soft that nobody heard him, nearly not even himself.  
  
The two Death Eaters who were watching them were standing in front of him. Gods, how would he get out of this? Voldemort would definitely destroy the Torch and then kill them all. And right now, he couldn't think of anything that might save them. Nobody from the Order would know where they were. Nobody up there loved them.  
  
He suddenly felt that something in his heart told him to be more optimistic, that somebody else knew of their problem. But, nah, that couldn't be right. Who could know that he was in trouble? But the feeling was reassuring. It was as if a dear friend told him to hold on.  
  
"Towers" said a slow voice next to him. Amala's.  
  
"Towers what?" Harry asked, confused, snapping back to reality.  
  
"I dunno" she answered. "You asked, I answered, no?"  
  
"Quiet, you two!" said one of the Death Eaters in a harsh tone and Harry went back to his thoughts.  
  
Right, Towers, maybe he would help. But he didn't know where they were or that they were in trouble, did he? Of course not! But, maybe his Master? The man always said that his Master knew many things. But that was ridiculous, how could some person far away know of the situation? And even if he did, he wouldn't send help... would he? But he had always helped Harry... No, it was just griping on a hope that had no chance of happening.  
  
He jumped startled –as much as one could jump when tied up- when two red light beams shot from the darkness at the same time and the two Death Eaters fell down on the ground.  
  
"I told Voldemort to put some lights in these corners. And did he listen? Nooooo, he kept chasing me around, shooting spells"  
  
Harry felt surprise and happiness flow through him. Towers' voice! It was really Towers' voice! By the grace of some unknown force, the weird wacky man had come to rescue them! So, they were saved! Or at least, they would be soon. And, of course, the man was mocking his enemy and enjoying it. So, it was true... He'd come to save them. But how?  
  
"Dear, dear, my, my, what are we to do about him?" asked another voice as they came into the light.  
  
"Teach him a lesson."  
  
Towers waved his wand and the teens were free again, getting up quickly.  
  
"This is my friend, Mayhowl. So, how did the..." he started counting "ten of you end up in this mess anyway?"  
  
"We were trying to save the Torch" answered Harry. "How come you knew where we were?"  
  
"Your Amulet, Harry my boy." Towers answered with a wink "That rune inside it is my Master's. And he sent me to help."  
  
"So the Amulets are real!" said Hermione excitedly. Everybody else was pretty much confident and excited, out of what Harry could see. Well, being free and ready to fight was always a plus, no?  
  
"Of course they are! Why do you think I insisted on you wearing them?" the man said with a mischievous smile.  
  
"Why didn't you tell us?" asked Ron.  
  
"It wasn't necessary." Towers replied with a shrug and a smile. "Anyway, it was I who sold them to you. With my Master's help. But now we must go. The Green Flame Torch does not fight on its own. And it can be destroyed... But you, Harry, as its finder and therefore its true bearer, can use it best. You can also summon it with your will, but surely you know that"  
  
Harry nodded.  
  
"Let's go" said Towers and led them to a door. He opened it and they went through it, following him. Mayhowl was right behind Towers, Harry behind Mayhowl, and the rest randomly behind. Suddenly, Towers stopped walking.  
  
"Your wands! Merlin's beard!" whispered Towers. "I nearly forgot!"  
  
He handed them their wands and started walking again.  
  
The scenery was awful: it must have been an old castle, great in it's time, but now it was wet and nearly ruined. The darkness on the corridor was broken only by the small lights from their wands. Otherwise, Harry thought that if a few shadows started moving around, he wouldn't be too surprised. It was really, really creepy, but he knew that creepy meant nothing compared to what would happen if Voldemort destroyed the Torch. Harry's senses were working overtime, making him notice every small spider that walked around. Finally, they made it to a door.  
  
"On three, we jump inside and shoot everything in sight" Towers said. "Voldemort will be in there. I want you to keep cool... Remember, fear can kill. Good luck."  
  
He counted to three and then opened the door and jumped inside, stupefying a Death Eater before anyone could even blink. Harry noticed it was a square room with Voldemort and the Torch in front of it, a potion of some sort next to him. The dark Lord was sitting on a chair, thinking. There were about twenty Death Eaters in the room and they were either standing or sitting near the walls. The room had no furniture besides a few chairs next to the walls. All that, Harry saw barely a few moments, even less than a second, because in the next second, Voldemort was on his feet with his wand in his hand and Towers jumped out of the way, skillfully getting away from an Avada Kedavra.  
  
And all hell broke loose. Death Eaters were shooting all they could, the teens were casting all hexes and charms and jinxes they could think of. There were spells flying everywhere and bouncing off the walls. One of the Death Eaters got hit by a reflected Avada Kedavra that Voldemort had sent towards Towers. The Dark Lord swore loudly and Towers snorted. The teens were doing well and Harry was fighting his best. He noted how weird it was that his scar didn't hurt. But he didn't have time to ponder on that as he shot everything in sight.  
  
Voldemort had his hands full with Towers who was proving his power, so he definitely couldn't take care of Harry while the man was keeping him busy. Furious, he started fighting even more viciously.  
  
"I can't hold him much longer!" Towers yelled and turned his head towards Harry, trying to protect himself and keep an eye on Voldemort in the mean time "Harry..."  
  
Harry heard him, but so did Voldemort and a few things happened in the same time.  
  
"the Green..."  
  
The young man realized what the man would say, the same thought on his mind and he thought of the Torch as hard as he could, wishing for it to come to him.  
  
"Flame..."  
  
The torch was coming towards him, but Voldemort also noticed what was going on. He started saying, as quickly as he could, fear in his eyes:  
  
"Avada..."  
  
"Torch!"  
  
Harry had the Torch in his hand and he felt power rush through him quickly.  
  
"...Kedavra!"  
  
The green jet of light hit Towers fully and the man fell on the floor.  
  
"NOOO!!" Harry yelled and held his wand tightly, yelling:  
  
"Stupefy!"  
  
Voldemort ducked as the red beam shot towards him, hitting a Death Eater behind that was not only stupefied, but also thrown into the wall at full speed. Harry wondered how the others were doing, hoping they were better than Towers, but he saw that they were losing the battle. Mayhowl was down, his wand a few centimeters from his unmoving hand, Hermione and Luna were wandless, but were hitting with their fists and legs, Ron was dancing under Tarantalegra and Ginny was cornered by three Death Eaters. Jane had managed to get a dagger and she was stabbing everything in sight, yelling "TAKE YOUR BREATH AWAY!" in a sing-like voice, making the Death Eaters lose their concentration. Mark was hiding behind some chairs, trying to do his best, but he got a stupefying spell just as Harry watched him. Draco was fighting bravely against two Death Eaters, but he would lose soon. Neville was fighting against some hex or another. Amala was on the floor under the weight of a Death Eater. Voldemort, however, didn't know that the Death Eater party was wining, so he had his eyes widened in fear.  
  
"Hogwarts! Dumbledore!" Harry yelled, without thinking too much. In fact, he didn't know why he said it, besides wanting to be there. "Help!"  
  
This wasn't the time to kill Voldemort, something told him that. The Torch shivered and everything started to spin around them.  
  
When it was over, he could see that he, his friends, the stiff Mayhowl and Towers' body, along with all the wands were in an empty classroom in Hogwarts. The Green Flame Torch was no longer in Harry's hand and he looked around for it, but it was gone.  
  
It was all over... Hermione grabbed her wand and undid Ron's Tarantalegra. The others tended to their own wounds before they actually got to see Towers and Mayhowl lying on the floor.  
  
"Is he... He's dead..." Amala muttered and went over to Towers as Hermione tried to cast the 'enervate' over Mayhowl. To her relief, it worked.  
  
"My goodness" Ginny muttered and followed Amala's lead, Luna walking uncertainly after them.  
  
Mayhowl moaned, but when he looked towards the lifeless body, he jumped to his feet.  
  
"What happened?" he asked towards the boys, his eyes wide in fear.  
  
"He's dead. That's what happened" Draco snapped.  
  
"Voldemort?" he asked slowly, but didn't wait for the answer. "Curse the man"  
  
"We agree" Ron said and also made his way towards Towers' body, the others following.  
  
Harry looked at the peaceful face he had. No horror, no fear, it was a sort of peace that reminded of sleep. But from this sleep, he would not wake up.  
  
"It can't be..." Amala muttered. "Did I... did I tell you I met him in the Department of Mysteries when I saved Sirius? Do you think I could... go after him? Through the veil?"  
  
"I don't know..." Hermione replied. "You had trouble last time, didn't you?"  
  
They heard the door and footsteps and all of them turned to see Iris Rose enter the room and beaming as she saw them there. But then her eyes widened and her face turned to shock as she saw the body on the floor.  
  
"Oh, my God..." she muttered. "Jack? What happened?"  
  
"He saved us from Voldemort's clutches" Harry replied quietly. "And he was shot with an Avada Kedavra before... before I used the Torch to get us all out of there"  
  
"Dead..." she muttered, rushing towards them. "I can't believe it..."  
  
She let herself down next to him, between Ginny and Amala.  
  
"Maybe there's a way in which he could be saved? Like Sirius?" Amala asked and Iris let out a snort of sad laughter.  
  
"That can't happen" she replied, tears in her eyes.  
  
"Why not? It worked with Sirius and... I'd go back!" the girl pleaded as if Iris was the only one holding her back from doing it.  
  
"Do you know what the difference is?" Iris asked her, looking her in the eyes with a sad expression.  
  
"No. What is it?" the other asked, feeling tears start to build up in her.  
  
"It's that Sirius Black wasn't meant to die at that moment... Whereas Jack Towers was never and I repeat, never, meant to live" the beautiful Professor replied, sniffing. "And he knew it"  
  
"What do you mean?" Amala asked, but Iris didn't answer. "Tell me!" she cried.  
  
"I can't..." Iris replied and turned towards Jack Towers. "Goodnight, Navrad... We loved you" she said to him, softly and then laughed bitterly. "You know, he asked me that when he'd die, I shouldn't be sad, because he'd be happy and I'd bring him down. And you know, I think he was sincere"  
  
She looked them all in the eyes and Harry felt she was telling them not to feel sorry about anything, to carry on with their lives without grieving for him. To understand that his own death wasn't a tragedy for him. Harry looked at all the others attentively. Iris had said farewell, but she wasn't really distraught, she was a bit sad, like one would be when a friend goes into a long trip. Amala looked at Towers thoughtfully and she seemed to be thinking of something, but she wasn't too sad either. Draco was staring at Towers as if he didn't believe it. Neville was shaking a little, seeming to remember the fight and the way Towers had died. Jane had a hand over Towers' hand and she seemed to be really sad. Mark was shaking and crying, scared. Harry didn't blame him, he'd just been into battle, circled by people who wanted to kill him and had witnessed somebody from his side, who had been his teacher, die. And he was barely eleven. Ginny looked sorry and she had tears in her eyes. Hermione also had tears in her eyes. Luna was shaking her head with sorrow. Ron was dumbstruck. Mayhowl looked as if he had realized his best friend would leave and never come back.  
  
"Well, we should go" Iris said slowly. "The Professors are terribly worried and the students are wondering what happened last night. I'll take Jack's body to the infirmary, we'll... we'll try to think about the funeral. You go to the Great Hall, everybody must be there by now, I mean, the students. The Professors are just getting there"  
  
They nodded and Harry went to the door and opened them. As soon as they stepped out, however, Mayhowl said:  
  
"I should be going... My place isn't here. Farewell and take care of yourselves"  
  
"But aren't you going the same way as us?" Draco asked, but Mayhowl didn't reply, he just leaped and, to their surprise, turned into a wolf and started running down the corridors. "Whoa, what was that?"  
  
"A Homomagus" Hermione whispered. "Mayhowl wasn't human, he was a wolf... May Howl. Let's go..."  
  
None of them asked Hermione how she knew that. Instead, they all went down the corridors to the Great Hall which opened its doors with a bang. They entered and Harry realized how horrible they looked when everybody gaped at them in shock and worry. The Professors were at the Head Table –all except three, Rose, McGonagall and someone else- and they looked at each other in surprise when they entered.  
  
"Oh, my" Vector said, shaking his head.  
  
"Welcome back to Hogwarts!" Dumbledore said, standing to greet them. "It is wonderful to see that you are alright"  
  
"The Torch..." Harry said. "We saved it, but when I used it to get out of Voldemort's castle, it disappeared"  
  
He didn't notice nearly all the Hall cringe at the name, but he awaited Dumbledore's scold, he expected him to say how foolish they were to go after the Torch, that anyway it disappeared, but the Headmaster smiled.  
  
"So, you saved it" he said gently and, seeing Harry's surprise, he added: "The Torch disappears when it finishes its goal."  
  
Harry looked at him and smiled sadly, his eyes in tears.  
  
"Professor Towers came to help us, he saved both us and the Torch... But he got hit by Avada Kedavra" the teen said slowly. "He's dead; Professor Rose is taking his body to the infirmary"  
  
Dumbledore looked at him sadly and said slowly:  
  
"So that is why you are all so sad... A time ago, Jack Towers told me that he would die one day, probably before me and he pleaded me not to be sad about it, or it would bring him down. But I do believe that a toast is in order. All raise glasses to Jack Towers, who died to save the Green Flame Torch and ten of our best students. Raise your glasses to Jack Towers"  
  
The Great Hall did so and 'to Jack Towers' was said all over the Great Hall. The ten started walking towards their seats, Amala looking at the Head Table, searching for somebody. When they almost made it, the doors of the Great Hall opened and in came McGonagall and the third missing Professor: Severus Snape.  
  
"Thank goodness" McGonagall muttered, seeing the filthy, tired and hungry students. But Severus made a few steps towards the Gryffindor table and, to the great surprise of everybody in the Hall, he put his arms over Amala and hugged her tightly. She embraced him, too and put her head on his shoulder, a few tears running down her face.  
  
Even though his face was still cold, even though he hadn't said a thing, nobody could mistake that sign of affection for anything else and almost every student and nearly every teacher gaped at them in surprise. Even Harry, Ron and Draco gaped, not believing the fact that Severus Snape actually hugged her in front of everybody. The only people who didn't seem to be quite that shocked were Hermione, Ginny and of course, Dumbledore, who probably wouldn't seem surprised if the students announced him they would eat in the kitchens from then on, in order to help Hermione with S.P.E.W.  
  
Amala opened her mouth to say something, but Snape just held her tighter, making her stop from whatever she would want to say. She had tears running down her cheeks and Harry realized just how awful she looked, it was as if she'd rolled around on the ground for hours. Snape let her go, took a step back and said in a tone that became a tad amused as he spoke, although it was a bit concerned:  
  
"I cannot ask you to never do that again. You will do it no matter what, being part of the House that jumps into all sorts of things head-forward. And I should remember that I agreed to your plan. However, I must say that I'm most pleased to see you are alright. Most of the school has worried about you."  
  
With that, he turned towards the Head Table and, without a look back, went to eat his breakfast. McGonagall just looked behind him with her eyebrows raised and then started walking towards the Head Table also.  
  
First, there was a soft murmur, as Amala sat down. It soon became a powerful murmur. Then, nobody bothered murmuring anymore so it was downright loud to hear everybody talk in the same time about Amala and Snape, about You-Know-Who, about Amala and Snape, about the Torch, about Amala and Snape, about Towers and his death, Amala and Snape, what had happened to the ten, Amala and Snape, what Dumbledore had said before they had come in, about them being captured by You-Know-Who, Amala and Snape, Tower's death, their escape and a bit more about Amala and Snape. Because of course, Harry Potter had escaped You-Know-Who before, but who ever heard about Snape having a girlfriend? And then, of course, they realized the order of importance and the talks switched to Towers and how he had escaped from the Aurors in April and about him being thought to be evil and then his turning out to be good and of course, his death.  
  
All in all, it was one of the noisiest breakfasts there ever were. And up, in the infirmary, there was the body of Jack Towers, ex-Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, Ancient Sautaus Dragon Animagus lying on a bed. Over it hovered a spirit without body, a spirit who was looking thoughtfully at the body before he smiled and whispered:  
  
"Fifty years was alright"  
  
Then, he laughed to himself and floated out the window before he realized he could go through the wall, too. He chuckled to himself and left.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
"I see dead people" Kate said and started laughing. "So do I, bro, so do I! Every day I do! That's what I do for a living, watch dead people float around!"  
  
Kate Samantha Backfield was watching TV on one of her free days, lying on the bed in a nice villa in Greece and she was watching –of course- the Sixth Sense. It was one of her favorites, that movie with the kid who could see dead people who wanted him to do them a favor. Of course, the boy was scared and of course nobody believed him to really be seeing anything. There also was a psychiatrist that was supposed to be telling the kid that he's not seeing anything and –huge twister!- the psychiatrist was also dead! And he was telling the kid that he couldn't possibly see dead people. What a laugh! Muggle movies were so naïve!  
  
Kate was a quite unusual woman. One: she was over a thousand one hundred years old. Two: she wasn't quite alive. Three: all this happened because of her job. She had voluntarily and unforced decided to give her life to Death and become Her servant –which sounded a lot worse than it was. She actually got to scout around the world, very much alive, except for not being able to be killed or turned into a vampire or werewolf or anything of the sort and being able to materialize and dematerialize her body at will. But otherwise than that... she could eat, drink, smell, you name a human action, she could do it. Of course, she had to take care of the Gate of the Veil in the Department of Mysteries ever since the Great Idiot Herself, Marsha had been... 'fired' by Death and died. About time, too, she had been there for a thousand years plus minus a hundred. The sacking had happened when that Amala girl had come to save Sirius Black –gosh, he was handsome!- and Death herself had been summoned. Kate had been there with her, unseen by human eyes and she had laughed her head off when Death offered the girl the job of taking care of the Veil, knowing she would refuse. Gosh, Death had been so pleasant as to not scare the two. She'd joked around and everything was downright funny. But hey, that's Her to you!  
  
So, she was now on vacation, enjoying the Sixth Sense and sun and sea and having not a problem in the world, until...  
  
"Hello, Kate, do me a favor?" she heard a very well-known voice from the door.  
  
"Jack Towers, what are you doing interrupting my vacation...?" she started, turning her eyes from the TV to look at the man. "Oh, you're dead"  
  
"No need to sound so impressed" he said, smirking at her matter-of-fact voice. "Yes, I'm dead. An Avada Kedavra, to tell you the truth"  
  
"Ooh" she said, nodding in understanding. "But who did this to you, you look... transparent!"  
  
He shook his head in disbelieve.  
  
"Are you sure you're over a thousand years old?" he sighed. "Voldemort, that's who"  
  
"Ah, snaky!" she said with a small smile. "How is he? Last seen him when he was being brought back into a decent body –and he's one ugly fellow, I'll give you that. Trust me, I saw him naked-."  
  
Towers grimaced at the mental image and decided not to ask exactly how that had occurred.  
  
"He's alive" he replied bluntly. "Listen, you're ruining my pleasure in being dead"  
  
"Oops, sorry. How's your Master?" she asked. "Bringing you back to action, I guess..."  
  
"No" he replied slowly and looked at her in a let's-get-to-business way. "He never brought me back and he warned me, once dead, I stay dead"  
  
"Ooh" she said and searched for her words. "My condolences, then. So, next stop Spirit Land, huh, Navrad?"  
  
"Don't call me Navrad, I have a name" he said with a small smile. "And yes, that's where I'm going. But please, do me a favor... please?"  
  
"Sure, Jack" she said and winked at him. "Anything you want. But let me guess, a last message, huh? That's what they all want. I mean, what am I, an owl?"  
  
"Yes" he replied, smirking. "Tell Nymphadora Tonks that I love her too. In private, please. And tell her that I'll be back, but she shouldn't wait for me. Tell her that se should get someone else..." he replied, a bit thoughtful.  
  
"Ah, young love..." Kate sighed and when he shot her a look, she added: "Hey, I'm twenty-two times older than you! But what about the going back part? Huh, huh, huh?"  
  
"A Navrad has his ways" Towers replied with a dreamy look in his eyes.  
  
"I thought you hated being called Navrad?" she asked, frowning and grabbing a pillow.  
  
"It's what I am, not who I am. Would you like me to call you 'human' all the time?" he asked and when she shook her head he asked: "See?"  
  
"Yeah, yeah, whatever" she replied and then smiled to him. "I'll miss ya, you crazy weirdo, you!"  
  
"I'll miss you too" he replied with a smile. "Please, pass on the info"  
  
"No problem" she replied with a wink. "So, come visit, you know where to find me"  
  
"It took me two days to do so" he replied, laughing.  
  
"But you have all eternity, don't you?" she asked, laughing herself. "Farewell, Jack Towers, son of... Who're you son of, again?"  
  
"No need to tell you, is there?" Towers said and smirked. "Bye"  
  
"Bye" she said, smiling widely and waving at the spirit. "Hey, not fair, I missed my favorite scene!"  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Gryffindor won the House Cup, but not that many people were happy about it. The Ministry had of course sent some people to investigate Towers and try to find out more about where he had lived, there were interrogations all over the place, Veritaserum was being used.  
  
Draco was in a very dark mood, seeming to have cared a lot about Towers. Snape was in a weird mood. He seemed to be thoughtful and maybe a bit sad. Students were really worried. It had finally struck them that Towers, the one who had brought the Necrow into class, the one that had scared Draco Malfoy with his Dementor face, the one who had ran away in his dragon Animagus shape when he was searched for by the Aurors, that Towers was dead.  
  
And at the End of the Year feast, Dumbledore stood to say a few words.  
  
"When young Jack Towers entered my office in November, I knew of his delicate situation with the Ministry. Also did I know that he was a good man... His Master, whom he respected greatly, had come to me one night, the only time I ever met him, and told me that Towers would come to me to take the job. I did not accept him because of his teaching skills. I did not accept him because he had theoretical knowledge that would help you on your exams. I chose him because he could show you things others could not. He was not a Professor. He was a warrior who lived in the middle of the battle, a warrior who feared nor death nor pain and who lived every second as if it were his last. Yes, he brought a Necrow to school, controlling it the way dark wizards do... Jack Towers was a dark wizard"  
  
The Great Hall gasped as the Headmaster said that and there were whispers all around the Hall at that statement.  
  
"But a dark wizard on the side of light" the man continued. "He had the powers of a Dementor, as you would soon find out. He used them on Draco Malfoy to prove his point to everybody, to make everybody understand what it meant to be one of those wizards, what it meant to be on the receiving end of such dreadful things. At that very lesson, he has told you that his Master, in a dark mood, was not much different from Lord Voldemort. And Jack Towers was a lot like his Master"  
  
There were a few fearful whispers in the Hall, but Dumbledore raised his hand to stop them.  
  
"But the truth is, he was only half-spoke about the truth. His Master has, even in his darkest moods, a great difference from Lord Voldemort. He never hurts for no reason, he never kills for no reason. Even in the darkest of the darkest moods, he is still calm and powerful and loving deep inside. For, for this Master, the whole world is worthy of love, Muggles, wizards and creatures of all kinds alike. Yes, he might be terrifying, yes, he might strike dangerously, yes, he might call thunderstorms... But he would never hurt anybody without that one needing to be hurt in order to learn the lessons of life. And like is his Master, like was Jack Towers. Behind his weird, contradicting surface, Jack Towers has taught you more lessons than any other Professor. And when his time was up, he left. Yes, he put a great show of it, but through his show, he desired to prove the power of his Master. A modest man, a brave man... He gave his life to save those of his former students."  
  
Everybody was watching Dumbledore speak and Harry felt two or three tears in his eyes... Yes. Towers had died for them... As had Sirius, precisely one year ago. Suddenly, he could see similarities between Sirius and Jack Towers... Both crazy, both life-loving, both brave and adventurous. Both having no problem in disobeying the rules. Both jumping to save him... Both dying.  
  
"But I have not known him too well, another one of us has. Iris Rose, will you please?"  
  
The woman, in tears, but smiling widely, got up and raised her head, ready to speak as the Headmaster sat down.  
  
"Once upon a time, quite a few years ago, I was going through the woods that elves hold in their keep. There, near a small river, stood a young man that I had never seen before. He was human, not an elf, I saw quickly. He smiled at me the moment he saw me, he asked me what I was doing there, we started talking. It turned out he was the disciple of a Master I had heard of many times. After years, when we had gotten to be very good friends, he told me he would go into action, help the light side as much as he could. And he made me promise, there and then, that if he died, I would not weep, I would not cry, I would not grieve. He made me promise that I would remember that there is no death for those who live for real, there is just change. He asked me that if he died, I would take care of his funeral, since he had no family or friends, besides elves and a few wolves. And he wanted to be between humans, even in death.  
  
And so it was that he took the path of men, fighting for the light between them. And so it was that he took the name of Jack Towers. I shall keep my promise now and hold his funeral, the way he would have wanted it held. But he has had no home, he has had no friends, except for here... This castle holds many secrets and here shall we honor his memory for the last time. He desired to be burned and he shall be so. May the wind spread his ashes over the grounds of this place he feels so close to, may it take him to the Forbidden Forest which he loved like his second home. The funeral shall be held tonight, after this very feast. All has been prepared. Let us honor his memory for the last time"  
  
She sat down and everybody gaped at her. A funeral? At Hogwarts? Not everybody had been to such an event and some were maybe a bit afraid of what would happen, the first years, to tell the truth. Who had ever heard of a funeral in Hogwarts? And would they really burn his body? Not bury it? But that was... Why?  
  
As everybody gaped in shock at her, they could see a shadow moving behind her and up to Dumbledore. There, it caught shape for a second, a man with black wings that Amala seemed to recognize.  
  
"It is very nice of you to do so, but he has moved on, the Navrad... I take it upon myself to carry word of this to him, in the name of the connection his Master has with Death... graced be your souls, young ones"  
  
Dumbledore turned to look at him and his eyes widened a little.  
  
"You are Mark Strois, I presume?" he asked slowly. "Messenger of Death, are you not?"  
  
"Yes and yes, sir Albus Dumbledore" he replied with a small smile. "Messenger of Death indeed, the one who was there on the battle field when Severus Snape and Nymphadora Tonks were killed. The one who brought them back. I will be watching, but fear not, I am no threat"  
  
With that, he dissolved into thin air, only the memory of him remaining. The Great Hall just gaped.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
After their feast, the students were led outside by their teachers and they gaped at the sight: fifty meters away, a tree seemed to have grown out of nowhere, next to a stone table on the grounds. On the table there was somebody lying down, his hands above his chest, holding something which, some realized with a gasp, was a sword. The man was Jack Towers, looking nobler and more powerful than ever.  
  
There were flowers around the stone table, making it look like an altar. There were four torches around his body, all lit. Next to his head, there was a beautiful woman, dressed all in white. She raised her head and smiled at them pleasantly.  
  
"Welcome, Hogwarts" she said slowly and most of them forgot that they were welcomed onto the castle's grounds. They went towards her, wondering who she was and why she wasn't dressed in black, but in white at a funeral. Then, there was a bird's cry through the air and a hawk landed on the tree, on its lowest branch, next to the woman.  
  
"Hello, Saren, greatest of the elven priestesses!" Iris replied and everybody gaped again, realizing what the woman was.  
  
"The others are coming soon" Saren said pleasantly. "Cornelius Fudge and his suite are here. So are the members of the Order of the Phoenix and some people that knew this Son of Courage. Come, children, make a circle around this altar."  
  
They just had to obey the beautiful woman who was smiling as if this was the occasion of a special ritual, not a funeral. Then, a lot of other people were seen coming towards them, dressed mostly in black, but also in other colors. Harry could see that one of them –Fudge- had a lime-green hat and was reluctant to show any type of sorrow for the dead man. He seemed to be complaining about something, but somebody shut him up.  
  
They came around the children and formed a great circle around the stone table. Iris made her way slowly to Saren and the two smiled at each other fondly. Then, Saren stood back, leaving everything in the hands of Iris.  
  
"Here lies a Son of Courage, a Warrior indeed" she said slowly towards everybody. "And his soul may not be here, but he would feel great joy in this ceremony we offer him. The Tibetans cry at the births of their children and laugh at the funerals of those they love, for they know death is liberation from the slavery of life. Let us laugh at his funeral as we have laughed at his birth: this man will never die, just his body has. And he was glad to be born, this Navrad. He was freed from many of his problems. He is free to be now a man"  
  
She smiled at them fondly and mentioned for a weird-looking man to come forward. Harry recognized him to be Mayhowl the wolf and gaped.  
  
"It is a tradition amongst the greatest warriors that when one would die, the others will cherish him" he said slowly. "Warrior of love, warrior of light"  
  
"Never reach your soul's night" Saren said slowly.  
  
"Forever shine, wherever you are" they said together, starting to sing. "On Life's sky you are always a star! Many dangers you've faced, many problems embraced, but forward you dared go, searching for your soul"  
  
Some other started to join them, under the amazed eyes of the students and of the Professors.  
  
"Warrior of love, warrior of light, never reach your soul's night! Forever shine, wherever you are, on Life's sky you are always a star!"  
  
Harry opened his mouth in disbelief at the ones who were singing. He could see now, they were elves, singing the same tune, a tune of sadness that concealed joy. The tree started to move slowly, as if it were wind, accompanying the songs of those around it.  
  
"Your courage led you forth, it was your soul's north. Your wisdom has grown, many times that you've shown..."  
  
Before he knew it, he had the urge to sing along with the others and he opened his mouth to sing what seemed to be the chorus.  
  
"Warrior of love, warrior of light, never reach your soul's night! Forever shine, wherever you are, on Life's sky you are always a star!"  
  
He then closed his mouth, not knowing the next words. To his surprise, he could see that Amala was also singing, smiling slightly, her eyes in tears.  
  
"Rise like a raven to your power within, and then like a sun you shall be seen!" she sang as clearly as the elves.  
  
Saren then came forwards and took one of the torches, Iris took the second, Mayhowl took the third and another one raised on its own accord, making Harry gap at the sight. While the others were singing the chorus again and again, the three had stopped singing and had taken two steps back, before putting Towers' body on fire. Then, they put the torches back and the fourth one went back at its own accord. Mayhowl started saying loud, over the sounds of the fire:  
  
"A sole wolf runs on the Siberian plains, on his silvery fur the moonlight rains. In his eyes shines the search of his life, his heart has been stabbed by love's silver knife!"  
  
It was an impressive sight. Many of the elves and even some of the humans were murmuring on the melodic line of the song while Mayhowl was speaking in a loud, powerful voice  
  
"His paws gently touch on the cold winter ground, in his powerful chase, he makes not a sound. A deep howl rises from the core of his soul, feeling the need of reaching his goal"  
  
A soft song, besides the murmur of the elves, humans and trees started sounding. It was a majestic, powerful, but somehow celebrating song.  
  
"And he feels the emptiness that needs to be filled, he must make it tonight, or he shall be killed!" Mayhowl said and Harry could swear he seemed to be smiling. "The stars above him lighten his way, so to his fears he shall not be prey! But they cannot lift the lust in his heart, from her he will surely not be long apart!"  
  
He seemed to have finished his poem, or whatever it was, since his voice could no longer be heard. Surprisingly, there was nearly nothing left of Towers' body and Iris said clearly, over the songs and the sounds of the fire:  
  
"Farewell, until next time, Jack Towers, one who used to be Navrad!"  
  
The flames seemed to die down and nothing was left besides the ashes. Harry was wondering how that had been possible, but then he remembered that it was probably magic. It was a powerful, celebrating feeling that had fallen over all of them and many of them felt ashamed because of it, considering it a bad thing to be the least bit happy at a funeral.  
  
Mayhowl, Iris and Saren had tears in their eyes, but they were smiling. Iris took out a small urn and made a small gesture with her wand, the ashes getting into it. She then looked at Saren who nodded slowly and took the urn from her hands and jumped slowly on the stone table that started floating off the ground, upwards. A slow wind started blowing and the elven priestess took the ashes out of the urn and let them flow in the wind that seemed to carry them towards the Forbidden Forest. After taking out even the last ashes, the table got down again and she jumped off it easily and graciously.  
  
"It has been a tradition for thousands of years that warriors get this funeral" she said with a smile. "Death is not a threat to them, it is a new challenge. And they always face new threats with great courage. Would any of you feel sad reading the great adventures of heroes in farther lands, tales of courage and honor, of daring and love? For them, that is what death is: the next adventure. That is what warriors all see. They fear not death, for they understand what it is, even if they do not know they do so. And I must say: those who live their lives as well as they can never die, even in death they are very much alive. Be not sorry for the Son of Courage that died today, be sorry for those who are dead while they are walking and talking like the rest of us. Be sorry for those who fear adventures and the unknown: those are dead. But never be sorry for those who live life savoring every last drop of it: they are not to be mourned, they are always to be happy for, mourn the ones that are dead while alive."  
  
With that, she threw the urn into the air and it became a white dove that flew up into the skies and then disappearing. She smiled at them once more before she stepped back from the stone table and the flowers around it, turning and leaving towards the Forbidden Forest, the elves after her. Only one of them remained, a girl that Harry soon realized to be Sania.  
  
"What-?" he asked slowly to himself as she walked towards them, a smile on her face.  
  
"I have buried my brother; I have buried my love; each time I cried with my heart broken in pieces; and each time I was proven I should not have" she said slowly. "Those that died live forward, the difference is, we shall not see them again for awhile, unless we get a gift from the Gods. Be not sorry"  
  
With that, she turned and walked behind the elves. The students looked long before them and Iris made a gesture.  
  
"Let us go" she murmured. "Inside, it is finished"  
  
They all walked towards the castle, disbelieving all they had seen. Iris was walking between Amala and Harry.  
  
"What song was that?" the teen asked.  
  
"Warrior's path" she replied with a small smile. "To remind us all that warriors never truly die. And Mayhowl spoke the Moonlight Symphony, the wolf's song of cherish, representing the fact that one is always searching and running to find his goal. It is usually not spoken in human tongues."  
  
Harry nodded slowly before he asked:  
  
"Could you teach them to me?" he asked slowly.  
  
"Of course" she replied.  
  
They all went towards the castle, not noticing that one of them had remained behind.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Severus Snape was looking at the flowers around the altar and wondering... What had Towers done to make him feel sorry for him? He sighed to himself and looked at the tree that started moving away. He had arranged the whole place to aid Iris and knew that the tree was in fact a dryad. He watched her go away with the raven.  
  
He went by the shores of the lake and stared at the beautiful sky and at the wonderful reflections in the water. It was beautiful this night... and the funeral had been a true warrior one. He had been before at one of these and he knew that it had been quite typical, but nevertheless impressive.  
  
He suddenly became aware that there was someone next to him and that the other had been there for quite awhile. He swirled around and saw that, merely two meters behind him, there were a black horse and its rider, dressed in black. They were both looking at him, the man having his face hidden somehow in shadows, as if there would have been a tiny cloud over the moon that only shadowed his face and nothing more. But his eyes were glittering in the dark like two stars.  
  
"How are you, child?" the man asked and Severus's eyes widened in shock.  
  
"Jack Strois" he muttered, knowing that voice anywhere. His own Master...  
  
"Yes Severus. Wonderful to see you again"  
  
The voice was soothing and calm, Severus knew it anywhere. He smiled.  
  
"Awful that you had to see a funeral tonight, though" Strois said with a smile. "Towers is not very sad, though. He even delivered a last message to somebody"  
  
"Who?" Severus asked curiously and the man laughed.  
  
"That is between him and the one he was in love with" came the reply. "But that is not why I came. I came to tell you that I have placed a great protection over your house. A whole army guards it, although you won't see it. You are safe from Voldemort. However, I ask for a favor in return"  
  
"Anything" Severus replied with a small bow of his head.  
  
"There will be need for protection this summer and you must offer it. In your home you will. Promise me, Severus, although at the moment you shan't be pleased, promise me you'll offer protection"  
  
Severus stared at the man before answering.  
  
"Anything, my Lord" he replied, a small smile on his lips. "I will serve you in any way possible, eternally"  
  
Strois laughed merrily.  
  
"That's your Death Eater pledge. Drop it. I don't want your devotion, I want your help"  
  
"Of course" Severus answered and smiled.  
  
Strois laughed again and raised his horse on two legs, moonlight falling on his face, but before Severus could see it properly, there was a huge lightning that struck merely a few feet away, a thunder nearly deafening him. The horse fell back on its feet and galloped towards where the lightening had just fallen. Another lightening came and it disappeared along with its rider.  
  
The Potion Master stared at the before-clear sky and realized it was full of dark clouds moving at huge speeds. Lightening struck all around him and he left, deciding to ponder on sudden changes of weather as soon as he was out of lightening-range. It was a complete stupidity to think of that while playing the Russian roulette.  
  
He walked quickly towards the castle and put a small protection over himself. Half ran towards the place, rain started pouring down and, until Severus got to his target, he was wet to the bone. He entered the school and closed the doors difficultly.  
  
"Hello Severus" he heard from behind him and he saw Albus. "What happened?"  
  
"A thunder storm" the Potion Master replied with a shrug. Telling the Headmaster of his meeting with Strois was a big no-no.  
  
"How come?" Albus asked, raising his eyebrows. "The sky was clear a few minutes ago"  
  
As a reply, Severus sighed and opened a door, revealing the huge storm outside.  
  
"Scottish weather, Headmaster" he replied with a shrug and closed the door back. Then, he dried himself and walked down to the dungeons.  
  
"Interesting" Albus said. "Last time this happened I was casting protections over the castle"  
  
Severus smirked to himself and somebody ran into him. What was this? Bug Severus to Death Day?!  
  
"What's with all the banging?" asked the man who turned out to be Filch.  
  
"It's called thunder, you idiot" Severus replied with a sneer and Albus's eyes twinkled.  
  
"A thunder... but that means a storm!" the squib said, gaping.  
  
"Precisely" the Potion Master said and walked in bat-mode to his quarters.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
AN: Well, guys, this, along with the Dragon Animagus scene were planned since I started writing the story. And I guess I'm close to the end now... one chapter or maybe two, but most likely one. And then... the SEQUEL! You know what's weird? This is the first time I realize just how J.K. Rowling- ish of me it is to kill Towers...  
  
I'll be gone until the 25th, but that's no reason for you not to review.  
  
Thanks to:  
  
Tsuetsu: Thanks for the review! :- )  
  
Rhys Hiscock: Thanks for the review!  
  
Alcapacien: Thank you... Well, I was hoping they'd escape, too, but hey...  
  
Gochan Son: hanks and I'm writing all I can! ;-)  
  
Bahzad: Thanks! 


	36. Until We Meet Again

Disclaimer: Own absolutely nothing!  
  
Dedication: This whole story is was and will be dedicated to the Red Dragons Order!  
  
Chapter 35: Until We Meet Again  
  
The group of ten was hiding in an empty classroom, Hermione having told them she had discovered something of maximum importance. From her glowing eyes and 'no-disobeying' face they soon realized they had to comply with her orders.  
  
"Remember what she said?" Hermione whispered to the group, referring to Rose. "Remember what they all kept saying about Towers?"  
  
"That he was expecting himself to die" Ron replied with a concerned shrug. "He was a weirdo..."  
  
"Not that, pea-brain" Draco said, shaking his head. "She means 'Navrad'. It's been said a few times this evening when referring to Towers"  
  
"Precisely. And Draco?" Hermione said, glaring.  
  
"Yeah?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"The only reason why I'm letting you get away with calling Ron a pea-brain is because we don't have much time."  
  
"I know" he replied with a smirk.  
  
"We need to get to our room and search for what 'Navrad' means, it can't be his name, I'm quite certain I've heard or read something about Navrads somewhere, if I could just remember..." Hermione said, drifting off.  
  
"Study?! In our last night at Hogwarts?! Hermione!" Ron complained, but she turned to glare at him with the worst glare Harry had ever seen on her.  
  
"RONALD WEASLEY!" she roared. "We WILL research the subject NOW because this is our last time at Hogwarts for the whole SUMMER!"  
  
They all backed away a few steps and Harry wondered how she had managed to stress and yell all those words to get a most terrifying effect. As she stood there, mad, tired and ready to kill somebody if occasion may come, he understood it wouldn't be easy to calm her.  
  
"So, um, let's go to the room, shall we?" Neville asked, his voice shaking and everybody realized why he had ended up in Gryffindor after all: it was quite a brave thing to speak to a fuming Hermione. She seemed to calm a little and they left the empty classroom quickly.  
  
Without much ado, they went through the corridors of Hogwarts quickly, of course not encountering anybody: which student or teacher or even caretaker would be out on the corridors in the last night and after the funeral of a former Professor?  
  
When they reached the room, they found it to be as cozy as ever. The fire roared in the fireplace as it usually did and they all started to look through the books in the library under Hermione's command.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Harry was officially tired and he felt that his eyes were closing. Mark was already asleep. Hermione was still searching through the books as quickly as she could.  
  
The room had again surprised them when they had started reading the books. The bookcase seemed to have an endless number of books and there were more books on the floor than they could have ever fitted in the bookcase, and still the thing seemed to be quite full.  
  
And Harry seemed to be at what was the thousandth book that night. It had been hours and hours of search, it was probably reaching five in the morning. Everybody, except for Mark, had a few books they wanted to take with them for summer. Jane had found a few things about her kingdom and she had put them away. Ron had found some interesting magic books and he was eager to see if he could possibly make things blow up or anything of the sort. Plus, there was a book that spoke of the making of wands and broomsticks. Including practical ideas. Draco had put away some dark magic, dragon and Animagus books. Neville had found some interesting books about plants. Amala had a stack of weird type of magic, Potions and Divination books. Luna had somehow found books on weird creatures. Ginny had found charms books. Harry had a small stack on Animagus transformations, Defence Against the Dark Arts, Charms and Transfiguration books. And Hermione had stacks of all types of books, of course.  
  
So, all in all, they had found everything but Navrad books. Which was pretty annoying. Harry had stayed awake only because the books were interesting. There had been books on all kinds of creatures, history books with moving pictures in them, a few things about wands and their masters, a few things about the Founders of Hogwarts... And surprisingly new things. He wondered briefly who had made the room. He or she must have been really powerful to do all that... And to think nobody had ever noticed it!  
  
"I've found it!" he heard an enthusiastic voice and he turned to see Ginny smile broadly. "The Navrad thing!"  
  
They all gathered around her –Neville even woke Mark up- and Harry asked Ginny if he could see the cover. She nodded and he could see it was a book with black covers and gold writing on it. It was majestic-looking and the title shone slightly: 'The Book of Beings-Dead and Alive' by Mark Strois.  
  
"Look at the author" Harry said, gesturing to everybody. "Isn't he..."  
  
"The Guardian of Death" Amala whispered.  
  
"You mean, the guy who appeared before Towers' funeral?" Ginny said slowly. "... Is it just me or is there something weird going on here?"  
  
"Read about the Navrad, please" Hermione muttered. "We'll see about this later, ok?"  
  
Ginny nodded and started reading.  
  
"Navrad. Beings nor dead, nor alive. Most of them are said not to have a soul but to be like machines... They serve humans if they are called as they should be. They do not ask for anything in return. They do their task without pondering about it, they do not care if it is right or wrong. They are said to be the creations of ancient wizard and that they were put to guard ancient tombs, like pyramids. They are also called thought-forms. They act as they are told to.  
  
However, besides the typical Navrad, there are legends of intelligent Navrads, beings that have fallen to disgrace, beings that have souls and could think... but they choose not to, they are like sleeping beings that follow orders. However, legend says they can be woken to life by the grace of a truly powerful being or by grace of God himself. I for one believe the legends, but I believe these beings should be called differently, they should have different names... they are not the same with the thought-forms, they were not created by humans. They might even be humans with a tragic past. They might be fallen angels... They might be blessed beings that came to life as Navrads and were given souls, maybe they were graced. I do not know... My father will not tell me, but he knows the truth"  
  
They all looked at each other and stared in silence until Jane finally spoke:  
  
"So... Does that make Towers non-human and cursed?"  
  
"I don't know" Harry replied slowly. "I don't understand..."  
  
Hermione took the book and, after remembering the number of the page, turned to the first page.  
  
"First word" she read and gave a few pages. "Written by Jack Strois"  
  
"That must be his father" Amala said, gaping slightly. "Severus told me about him... Read it"  
  
Hermione nodded slowly and started speaking.  
  
"This book has been written by Mark Strois in 1946 and was finished on the 3rd of May, precisely two weeks before his painful and most unfortunate death. It will never be published. It never was meant to be. There are things here that should never be known by large public... Things a common wizard should not know. Instead, there will be three copies of the book. One shall be in the hands of my dearest child, Severus Snape. He will need it. One shall be in the hands of Albus Dumbledore. He will know how to use it. One shall be given to the ones in need... It has been arranged.  
  
Between these pages there are comments that Mark has written. He has mentioned things other never knew. It is a dangerous book... and therefore you, the reader, should not read the first few lines if you want your life to stay the same as it is.  
  
There are many things in this world unknown to Muggles. There are wizards and wands, magical clothes or books or paintings that move. There are dragons and ghosts... They do not know. Precious few are the Muggles who know of magic if they have no family connection with wizards. But there are some that know.  
  
Also, as hidden as is the wizarding world from Muggles, the same way are hidden the elven, warrior and other worlds to common wizards. Very precious few know of the existence of some of these worlds, whereas others are just unreachable... Paradoxically, there are more Muggles who know about warriors and elves and who visited them in their homes than there are wizards who know of these worlds.  
  
And of course, besides those, there are other circles of power... And very few understand the last, most powerful and the greatest circle of all... The circle of God. Few have reached it. Their names remained in history forever... Jesus Christ, Moses, Gautama Buddha, Mahavira... All these are in the last circle. They are not gods, but God. In that circle, there is no death, nor life. There is Eternity and Bliss. If you reach that very last circle, you reach the ultimate wisdom.  
  
Good luck on your paths... And may you be blessed.  
  
Yours truly,  
  
Jack Strois"  
  
There were again a few moments of silence before somebody said anything.  
  
"So, what's up with everything?" Neville asked slowly.  
  
"I don't know... But I'll take this book with me." Hermione replied. "Come on, let's go to our rooms"  
  
They cast levitating charms over the books and made it to their dormitories. Where they nearly didn't sleep, since it was past 5 o'clock, but that was not the point.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
The fire in the now empty room roared slightly in the fireplace and some flames burst up higher than they should have. The remaining books jumped up in the bookcase easily. The chairs went back to their places. Everything was just as it had been before the ten had come in.  
  
And none of them had known they were being watched by amused eyes.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Severus Snape was just going to bed. Navrad... Now, that had rung a bell in his mind. He had found 'The Book of Beings-Dead and Alive' soon and had read about what a Navrad was in the first hour. After that, he had searched for ways of summoning the things and he had found a few ways... unfortunately for calling a Navrad, not calling the one you wanted. So, finally, at half past five in the morning, he was going to bed.  
  
He collapsed in bed and managed to pull the blanket over himself. He didn't bother switching to pajamas, he just put the clock to ring at eight a.m. He usually woke up at 7 a.m. sharp without even putting the alarm, but this wasn't the case now, since he basically hadn't slept all night. So, he just went to sleep.  
  
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-  
  
Next morning, not just eleven people had problems keeping themselves up. But only those eleven had found out anything about Towers, the others had been either too sad or too scared to go to sleep.  
  
The breakfast finished all too quickly and soon they were all parting and going to the carriages. Amala had winked at her friends and had said she'd be Apparating home from London since she had learned how to do it. It would save her a lot of time.  
  
And just as they were about to leave, Severus had appeared and had dragged the girl away from her friends for a few minutes. Draco snickered to himself and after Amala had come back, he went to find their dear Potions Master. Surprisingly, he came back in one piece.  
  
Soon, everybody was on the train and the ten were in one compartment –of course, they couldn't all sit down at the same time, but it was still worth it-. There were all types of jokes, including Snape-jokes that Amala took surprisingly well. They played some wizarding games, ate as many chocolate frogs and Bertie Bott's Beans as they could –and Draco had the bad luck of getting a dung favored one-.  
  
Too soon for everybody, they were on the platform 9 ¾ and saying their goodbyes, acting as if nobody had died... Because now they knew nobody had. If Towers was a Navrad, he couldn't die, now could he?  
  
After meeting the Weasleys, the Grangers and the Chase-Monroes, Harry finally found Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon and they weren't too happy to see him. In fact, they looked very... sour, especially after seeing Luna –who looked odd even in Muggle clothes- say to Harry in a very dreamy tone:  
  
"Until we meet again, Harry"  
  
"Yeah... bye" the boy replied, waving slowly.  
  
"Stop waving like an idiot boy and come on!" Vernon said.  
  
So, they left, blissfully unaware of the things that would happen. If they'd have been very attentive, they'd have noticed how weird it was to have a perfectly boring trip back on the train. They'd have noticed how weird it was that they felt safe, even if Towers had physically died.  
  
And they'd also have noticed the weird man watching them thoughtfully, the man who had a hunch of how their worlds would be turned up-side down after a very short while. He knew that Towers had been just the beginning. He knew what it took to destroy the Dark Lord. He knew things the teens did not... but there were things that not even he suspected. He knew the past and present, he only had hunches about the future. The future that would soon come...  
  
THE END  
  
Author's Note: I'm... finished. Finished with one of the shortest chapters I wrote in the story. With one of the chapters that isn't exactly the best I've ever written. But it makesup for what will come.

It feels weird to know I finished this story... that from now on I will be writing the sequel. That it will have a different title. Which reminds me: the next story will be called 'Harry Potter and the Legacy of Slytherin'. The whole 'Green Flame Torch' was a hoax anyway, so I'm throwing the possible titles right out the window... ah, well...  
  
I promise that everything gets to be explained until the very end of the story. See you guys soon! Until we meet again...  
  
So, I want to say thanks to everybody who reviewed this story –and please review even years after I last posted, if you wish to-. You were all great! Thanks again...  
  
Thanks to:  
  
Inu-kokoro: I'm glad you like my story and don't worry: sequel coming soon! –I couldn't possibly resist posting soon! :-)  
  
Tsuetsu: Thank you. I have been fascinated with the idea of this type of funerals for quite awhile now... In my original story, the first funeral of the sort was for a very powerful warrior who had a tragic death and since I really liked the character, I gave him the best funeral I could think of. And thank you again for reviewing!  
  
Alcapacien: looks up towards the ceiling with a very innocent expression House Harry? Now, whatever gave you that idea? winks You might be right, you know ;-) But he won't be housing just one person.  
  
Midnight Belle: First of all, I'd like to say... I love your name! Second, I'd like to say thanks for the review and well... I'm just doing the best I can and I'm really pleased to see that the result is good.  
  
Gochan Son: Really dead? Oh, no... Navrads do not die... He's just 'out of order'. You might meet him again. Just not until the Dark Lord is 'vanquished'. As you will see, Towers has quite a lot on his head. coughs But from now on, some people will actually die... As much as I hate to do it. As for the Torch, its mission with Harry has been completed. And you will see just why it came and why it went away. Also, I'm really glad you loved the funeral scene –see Tsuetsu's response above to read more about it-  
  
Kara: Thank you! It's good to know I can intrigue ;-)  
  
Other chapters:  
  
Harryp/charmedfreak: Thank you for all your great reviews! And as for Amala and Snape... Well, she's more mature than some might think, she's in love, she's determined. Hate to bring it to you, but I've got plans for these two. And they'll be quite exciting. Also, Severus has some very interesting secrets to be told...


End file.
